Tune Trippin' : Issue 1

APRIL 2017

TUNE TRIPPIN’

Honeyblood Stag & Dagger Festival Record Store Day Elrow’s Glasgow Debut Crywank Interview

ISSUE 1

TUNE TRIPPIN’ Editor’s note: In this, the first edition of Tune Trippin’, we have crammed in as much music reviews, features and news our printers will let us; just to bring it to you.

Now lemme see; in this issue you can expect a full run down of what to see at the upcoming Stag and Dagger Music Festival (Page 16), on the 30th of April, courtesy of Brandon Cook.

We also have a rundown of some of the musical goings on over in Motherwell, scouted out

by Andrew Scott; with an interview with Derek Watson of the Banter Thiefs, and a recap of the Motherwell Makes Music Festival.

We have our “Techno Correspondent” Nicolle Cassells, getting her toes stood on and jostled about, to let you know who to see, and who to avoid in the nightclubbing landscape.

Our roving investigative reporter Ross Gilchrist out there getting the stories you didn’t know you wanted to read, but we know don’t worry.

Bound in this shiny book also dwells a review of Honeyblood’s set at the o2 Academy as part of the BBC Radio 6 Music Festival, which was happily visited by on Susi Paterson; who also has hopped in the Tune Tripping’ time machine and got a wee history of the iconic Barras for you.

Anyway a better finish off, let you get to the actual magazine, cheers, Dominic V. Cassidy

Honeyblood - Page 5 Subclub Turns 30 - Page 7 Record Store Day - Page 8 The Barras - Pages 11 Stag & Dagger - Page 16 Reviews - Page 20 Elrow - Page 29 Brownbear - Page 31 Little Fire - Page 33 New Hellfire Club - Page 38

Dominic V. Cassidy - Writer, Editor, Designer

Susi Paterson - Writer, Sub-Editor, Designer

Brandon Cook - Writer, Designer

Nicolle Cassells - Writer, Designer

Ross Gilchrist - Writer

Andrew Scott - Writer

Theodor Antoniou - Writer

3

HONEYBLOOD Reviewed at the 02 Academy, as part of the BBC 6 Music Festival

Cat Myers, photographed at the gig at the o2 Academy

By Susi Paterson It’s not often you get to say this about bands, but I’m going to call it…

Cat and Stina of Honeyblood look and sound better live than recorded. Energy and sex appeal just ooze from this confident Glasgow duo.

The music is well rehearsed and the songs are good. Playing to a packed crowd at the O2 on Saturday was a breakthrough gig, and they knew it.

Both women, now natives of Glasgow, were the first of three acts at the O2 Academy on 25th March. The vocals and peeling guitar from Stina Tweeddale carried the 45-minute set through a mixture of old favourites (Fall Forever, Super Rat) and some well received new songs, like Sea Heart, Ready for the Magic, and Love is a disease.

“she thrashed the hell out of her guitar on Babes Never Die, and looked like she was thoroughly relaxed and enjoying herself.”

From their latest album of the same title released in November 2016, she thrashed the hell out of her guitar on Babes Never Die, and looked like she was thoroughly relaxed and enjoying herself. It was a joy to see someone having so much fun with her performance.

“quite masculine in a way in its strength and hefty clout.”

Cat Meyers’ drumming was energetic and strong; quite masculine in a way in its strength and hefty clout. Her quieter steady vocals complimented Stina’s eclectic variety of styles, and the two voices sounded good together as Stina played with her extensive range in Gangs and Walking at Midnight.

As a band, they looked well-rehearsed and very confident, and for comparative newcomers they were testimony to Radio 6 producers knowing their stuff when it comes to promoting real talent.

“many who were there to see Granddaddy and The Shins, and were seeing Honeyblood for the first time.”

Their interaction with the hometown audience was simple and honest, and thankful for the support they were getting. They were going down a storm with this Glasgow crowd, many who were there to see Granddaddy and The Shins, and were seeing Honeyblood for the first time.

“what a feckin’ honour” The stage lighting and sound was excellent, provided by the BBC whose Radio 6 Music channel was hosting the whole extravaganza at multiple venues throughout the city, over the weekend. Stina thanked the Beeb twice saying, “what a feckin’ honour” it was to be asked to perform.

With this show, along with several radio plays and an interview over the past week, a new band just can’t buy that kind of exposure.

“made a fizzy splash.”

When they first formed back in 2014 at the time their first album was released, The Guardian said they had “made a fizzy splash.” I would say there is nothing ‘fizzy‘ about this pair. Honeyblood are seriously good and set for great things, and this was a terrific gig they’ll remember for all the right reasons.

5

AFTERLIFE OF PARKLIFE 23 YEARS ON

GOOD MONTH

By Susi Paterson

On Radio 4 yesterday afternoon, there was a re-run of an hour-long play called Parklife. It was written and first read in 2011 by Harvey Virdi, and it told the story of two very different teenagers who shared an improbable lifelong friendship based on a common love for Blur.

A lifelong love of Blur is not a rare thing.

Since the band’s inception in 1988, through the Britpop years and Graham Coxon’s departure in 2001, the band have split, reformed, then diversified in their private lives. But, still managed to stay in the public domain. Such is legend.

Iggy Pop The iconic singer has been made a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters (Orde des Arts et Lettres) by France- the countries highest cultural honour. The award is only given to “individuals who have made a significant contribution to the enrichment of the French cultural inheritance. He joins Bob Dylan and the late David Bowie on that list.

Founder and singer, Damon Albarn, has progressed onto Gorillaz and about a million other artistic pursuits from animation to world music. He was nominated in 2014 for a Mercury Prize and in 2013 and 2015 for Brit Awards. It seems Albarn is unable to stay still long enough to be tied down to anyone one thing.

Damon Alburn Damon’s virtual band ‘Gorrilaz’ are taking the world by storm with their latest releases and getting everyone gushing over their forthcoming album, Humanz.

BAD MONTH

The irresistible first single Girls and Boys struck out at number 4 on the Alternative Play chart, the Hot 100 and at number 21 on the Dance Club Song chart.

Evidently a fan of Ray Davies, Albarn’s lyrics on “Tracy Jacks” tells of a well-respected man at the end of his tether, striping at the beach and begin arrested for indecencies.

End of a Century, is another rocking number about how dreary everyday life can be. It’s about a life of drudge and poverty. Everyone wearing the same clothes and watching softporn on the telly.

In Parklife they weren’t the first to sing about being a disgruntled young Londoners. The Who did it with Quadrophenia and additionally wrote a film score for the blind pin-ball wizard. A nice touch was that lead actor Phil Daniels, showed up in the Blur’s video homage, while they sang of pretty typical everyday occurrences like, traffic jams and feeding pigeons in the park.

Blur went into a more punk mode on the track Bank Holiday and had another look at monotony the repetitiveness of work for a few measly weeks holiday each year. ‘Granma has new Dentures and there is a six pack on offer, if this is as good as it gets, it ain’t so bad.’

Jaden & Willow Smith Will Smiths teenage children said they are have formed a ‘rock band’ that will release a ‘K Pop’ single (Korean pop music). We haven’t heard it yet, nor seen the ‘band,’ but we strongly recommend you avoid it at all cost. Shite.

In Badhead the malaise continues with a 60’s style sound of psychedelia, about housing and long missing lovers who we fail to keep in touch with, but are too lethargic to do anything about it. The Debt Collector has the help of a brass section, Sgt. Pepper style instrumental interlude that trips into the next track Far Out. On To the End you may remember a touch of class brought to the sadness with some purring French vocals from Letitia Sadier of Stereolab, and on London Loves even if you’re not broke and have a few quid in the bank, life is still a let down.

Twenty-three years on you’ll see Damon with his ‘other band,’ who are set to release their new album ‘Humanz.’ Although there is talk of him and the boys reforming in the coming years, we have heard that before.

Radio broadcasts to be rerun 14 June 2017.

6

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle) Sub Club is a Glasgow venue that needs no introduction. It has evolved consistently through the years, changing when necessary. Its exclusive line up of World class DJs is what keeps the tickets selling ,and selling fast. After 30 years of opening its doors to Scottish clubbers the underground venue is still rated one of the top clubs in Scotland and arguably the World.

Alex James, however, has settled into being a family man, and makes specialist cheeses on a farm in the Cotswolds. And drummer and percussionist, Dave Rowntree, is a solicitor in London.

Incredibly, it will be twenty-three years ago on 25 April, since Blur released Parklife. Arguably their best album to date. One which not only shaped the face of British music, but also became the theme tune to modern day working class Britannia: “I get up when I want, except on Wednesdays when I get rudely awakened by the dustmen.”

With sixteen tracks, it caused an underground sensation in the UK, while America hardly noticed. Maybe they were too ‘British’ with Albarn’s high pitched nasally accent. But, like The Kinks, The Jam and Madness, the US failed to be enchanted with tales of every day London life.

SUBBY TURNS 30

Cabbage The UK punk band was supporting Kasabian in London on the 19th of April when the lead singer, Lee Broadbent, was accused of sexually assaulting a young woman. Lee allegedly stuck his hands down his trousers before rubbing his hands on the girls face, the band ‘strongly denies’ the accusations.

Since 1987 the club has remained under the grounds of 22 Jamaica Street Glasgow with its famous intimate dancefloor and low ceiling.

Originally the club struggled to take off and after its grand opening there were concerns the venue would have to close. Sub Clubs longest DJ resident Harri said : "We thought they were going to get shot of us." However, the fate of the club changed when The Stone Roses played at Scotland's Glasgow Green in 1990 and held their after party at Subby. Harri said that from then on the club was mobbed every weekend for about 4 years.

The venue holds a unique chilled vibe which regularly attracts clubbers who share a love of techno, house and hip hop music. The atmosphere in the club is not the same as those found at other typical music venues, it is much more intimate than that. The small capacity of 500 is perhaps what makes it such an intimate environment along with the low built ceiling and crammed dancefloor. The DJ booth is also held directly at the front of the dance floor, so close to clubbers that if they reach their hands out they can hi-5 the DJ - which they typically do. The club allows people to get up and close to the DJs and celebrate the music with them, taking down the walls that have been put up between artists, and their audience, over the years club owner, Mike Grieve said that the club aims to focus on new ideas and good music and not following the latest trend.

After turning 30 this month the club has announced that it is set to celebrate with a string of events from the beginning of April until the end of 2017.

From April 1st the underground club celebrated exactly 30 years of opening its doors to clubbers and first up to start the celebrations was Subby residents Harri & Domenic who played the decks all night long till 4am. The pair are Sub Club's weekly Saturday night residents at 'Subculture' which is now the longest running weekly house and techno night across the World. Harri has been a Sub Club resident since 1990 and Domenic since 1992. Harri was also a Subby resident at Atlantis which took place every Saturday night in the club along side Scotland's famous techno duo 'Slam' between 1990 – 1994. This makes Harris Sub Club Saturday night residency an unbroken 27 years long, not that anyone's counting.

Subby stage on May 6th . The American DJ is best known for her fluent and dynamic sets and has proven to be a technical mastermind with her mixes of dance and techno tracks. Tickets for this event have already sold out and 100 tickets available on the door.

Sub Clubs annual 2 day party ' Subby Soundsystems' will also be part of the birthday celebrations. This years' line up includes Maceo Plex and Dixon . This event will take place in Glasgow Barrowland's converted Warehouse as the capacity for this event is too large to fit in the small Subby venue.

Sub Club has said that more acts will be announced between now and the end of the year to celebrate the club turning 30.

Next up to help subby celebrate turning 30 was Bulgarian DJ KiNK. KiNK was the perfect DJ to help subby celebrate its birthday following his recent crowning of the Top Live Act of 2016 on Resident Advisors' poll. "Playing his drum machines like percussion instruments, tapping out keyboard melodies by hand, rocking his shoulders and swinging his hips as he tweaks EQs, he's less "electronic live act" than oneman band." He brought an electric set to subby on April 8th with another sell out event to keep the celebrations flowing.

Another act lined up to help the club celebrate its birthday was English techno legend ,Skream ,who blew the roof off the club on April 13th with another sell out 5 hour set (see page 15 for full review).

The next act lined up to keep the party going is The Black Madonna who will be taking to the

7

RECORD STORE DAY ’17 SET RECORDS STORE DAY RECORDS

Queues outside Big Spara Vinyl on Record Store Day 2017

By Brandon Cook (@bdoncook) Last weekend saw record shops throughout the country welcome a tsunami of customers through their doors to celebrate annual record shop day.

“Special vinyl releases are made exclusively for the day and many shops and cities host artist performances and events to mark the occasion. Thousands more shops celebrate the day around the globe in what’s become one of the biggest annual events on the music calendar.”

The impending aftermath of this vinyl cyclone was a devastating ‘fuck you’ to online streaming and, for some stores, a fifty per cent sales increase from last year. In the eye of the storm, customers could be seen queuing for a few hundred yards; some had been there from the very early hours of the morning.

Ian Wallace, Director of Big Sparra Record Shop in Ayr, told us how some of his customers had been “queuing since quarter past five in the morning” and how it was a successful weekend:

8

“It was twice as busy as last year. We had 2500 people through our doors, with 350 people in the queue at any one time. The queue was from the shop door right round the corner and down to the High Street. We only have twenty per cent of our stock left, we sold out of a lot of records and are left with just a handful of

some.”

Last year it was reported that vinyl record sales in the UK were at their highest in twenty five years. However, to Ian, these statistics don’t reflect the overall picture of vinyl sales in the UK in the past decade: “Vinyl has been going up for the last ten years, but its only now the media seem to be reporting it. Everyone buys records, from eight-year-old boys to eighty year old grannies.”

The actual content of sales varied from store to store. The official charts company reported that the top five best selling albums of Record Store day were, in order: Cracked Actor (Live in Los Angeles ’74) by David Bowie; Bowpromo, again by David Bowie; The Cures Greatest hits; Bruce Springsteen’s Hammersmith Odeon London ’75 and God Save the Queen by Sex Pistols.

The best selling singles continued with Bowie at the top with his posthumous single No Plan. The list also contains The Boy With The Thorn In His Side by The Smiths, Interstellar Overdrive by Pink Floyd, Red Hill Mining Town by U2 and Strawberry Fields Forever by The Beatles.

For Big Sparra record shop, there was a similar trend with Bowie. However, he told us how his store experienced some shock sales of records that weren’t exactly tipped for record day success, and, in Bucky Rage’s case, weren’t even listed:

“The biggest surprise was the selling out of a Glasgow band called The Bucky Rage who weren’t even officially part of Record Store Day. They must have sold about twenty to thirty of their records, so it was good payday for them.”

“Another surprise was Slaves white vinyl which was just the same as their last album but with a different coloured sleeve, that sold really well.”

Other key sales at Big Sparra were Hat’s off to the Buskers by the view which turned ten years old this year. Ian expressed his slight shock at that record as it retailed at £27. The store also shifted shed loads of Iggy Pop, some say that could be down to the release of T2 and the stars 70th birthday. Of course limited edition Bowie was a huge seller, Pink Floyd, Blossoms and Ocean Colour Scene also went fast.

Ian’s store was left with only twenty per cent of its stock, luckily they had a delivery on Wednesday to try and recover from the aftermath of their record store day hurricane. Ian stated: “Vinyl isn’t ‘just back’ its back with a vengeance, this isn’t its peak; this is just sales settling in. Ninety per cent of our customers were from outwith Ayr, so its not just benefiting us and the music business; it’s benefitting the town.”

If you missed record store day this year then be sure to set your alarm clocks for next year and pay your local record shop a visit, it’s probably going to be bigger again.

9

MOTHERWELL MAKES MUSIC

8/10

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98) The festivals debut confirms that Motherwell does in fact make music With more than 30 bands showcased across 4 venues in 3 days and hundreds of paying customers, the festival was no doubt a success with bags of talent on display. The March festival took place in the Lanarkshire town poised to showcase the best local acts and boy did it deliver.

Friday night saw the eagerly awaited premier of the festival in the town.

The pubs in Motherwell on a Friday night are known for 2 things, karaoke and a right good piss up. In Jack Daniels (JDs) local band ‘A Sudden Burst of Colour’ opened up proceedings and made sure the lack of karaoke wasn’t an issue. The audience continued to grow throughout until the place was packed to the rafters with a buzzing atmosphere. Headliners ‘Bloodlines’ proved that their reputation of being one of the hottest up and coming bands was spot on after lighting up the Electric Bar (Leckie) setting the bar of talent for things to come.

Saturday meant more of the same, same venue, same high calibre of local bands. It continued and if not bettered the standard and atmosphere of the previous night. Headliners and JD loyals ‘The Banter Thiefs’ stole the show in their home pub as the finale act of the evening. It saw the punters all pack into eagerly watch one of the stars of the show. Thankfully, they didn’t disappoint. Down the road in the Leckie punters were treated with the on fire ‘Holy Pistol Club’ from Dumbarton who were the pick of the night with their single ‘By your side’ proving to be a real crowd pleaser.

The grand finale was on the Sunday and was split between Starka and The Railway Tavern. Starka goers were treated to the acoustics of Jamie Keenan; it’s normally a vodka bar but Keenan’s melodies brought a calm vibe to a normally hectic and buzzing place. This set eased festivalgoers over to The Railway Tavern (The Tav) where headline act ‘The Dead Settlers’ ended the night and the festival with fan favourite ‘Burn With Me’ that complimented the set they played. And with that the festival drew to a close.

Obviously you can’t compare Motherwell Makes Music with the likes of TRNSMT or Glastonbury, but given its low budget and lack of exposure as well as its first year, it stuck true to its inception and showcased the best Motherwell and Lanarkshire had to offer, as well as some gems from further afield. And for only £10 for a weekend wristband, it’s not hard to see why it’s returning next year.

10

RIVERSIDE FESTIVAL ‘17

BY Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle) The Electric Frog and Pressure Riverside Festival is returning to Glasgow for the 5th consecutive year on May bank holiday weekend 27th & 28th.

The techno music festival will take place outside Glasgow’s Riverside Museum on the banks of the River Clyde. It’s an all day shot as it has been announced that the event will start at 1pm this year and finish at 11pm. The official after party will be held at Glasgow’s SWG3 where Slam will be playing.

Kicking off the festival on the Saturday is Scotland’s own Alan Fitzpatrick B2B with Slam along with the techno phenomenon Nina Kraviz, Telford, Surgeon, Rodhad, Paula Temple , Levon Vincent, Ilario Alicante and Sven Vath ( better known as Papa Sven) .

On the Sunday the big names continue with another one of Scotland’s own Jackmaster, Jasper James, Art Department, Loco Dice, Mr. G , Hunnee , DJ Koze, Derrick Karter, Groove Armada and George Fitzgerald B2B with Scuba.

Tickets for this event have sold out every year and this year is expected to be no different with tickets for both days currently on final release.

Tickets for the festival start at £45 and tickets for SWG3’s after party are £15.

A SHORT HISTORY ON THE LONG LIFE OF THE BARROWLANDS At the BBC Radio 6 music festival last week, headline bands like The Jesus and Mary Chain, Depeche Mode, Sleaford Mods, Ride and Bonobo, packed out the famous Barrowland Ballroom in Glasgow.

But over the years its transition from a ‘has been’ to a ‘must have’ venue on every musician’s trajectory, is far from ordinary.

Built originally in 1934, it burned down in 1958. It reopened in 1960, then fell into disrepair and obscurity through the seventies when it was brought back to life as a successful band venue in 1983 with the help of Scottish rockers, Simple Minds.

Lead singer Jim Kerr told Radio 6 Music last week, that he was delighted the band had played a big part in putting the venue back on the map: “Waterfront was written about the Clyde, which is outside this very building, as you

know, and talking to the video directors, everyone said, ‘It has to be Glasgow.’”

Whatever way you look at this iconic building, bands still claim it as a favourite, and at the end of March this year in an unseasonably hot weekend, it once again was central in hosting an impressive array of artists.

Close to the river Clyde it sits in the merchant area on the east side of Glasgow’s city centre. Built by Mrs Maggie McIver, a widowed mother of nine and entrepreneur, as a girl she had watched stall holders sell their wares from their ‘barras’ at this exact location. She had watched their struggle to make a living, despite bad weather and Police fines.

Her design for the building initially offered a ground level space to be used for weekend markets, and a larger hall on the first floor. When the hall later opened as

a ballroom she took no chance of folk not being able to find it. Neon had become popular in America in the 20’s and 30’s, and at no small expense, she commissioned a huge, distinctive flashing neon sign to decorate the front of the building.

Something similar is still there today.

In 1958 the original building was sadly destroyed by fire. Two years later, rebuilt and refurbished, it opened its doors again on Christmas Eve, and dancing the Barrowland was once again the place to be.

In its heyday, through the 60’s and 70’s, dancing at the Barrowland saw live bands provided the music, and every weekend up to two thousand revellers could bop, jive and ‘shoogle’ around the sprung dancefloor.

Some lady members of the Castlemilk Seniors Club were keen to talk to Tune Trippin’, recollecting happy times spent there in their youth, when it was the highlight of their week.

“The first time I ever went to the Barrowland, I was fifteen. I wasn’t supposed to go, I was supposed be to be going to the pictures with my pal, but her sister was going to the Barrowland and it was marvellous,” says Annie Stewart, now in her eighties.

Friend Jeanette Logan remembers: “My dad would only let me go that first time with my brother and his wife so long as they took me there and brought me back, and I loved it.”

Jean Kirkland leans in to tell me: “I couldn’t get out of my work quick enough for to get myself organised to go. As the lady said, a nice velvet cross over top with a straight skirt were very popular. Everybody wore what they wanted to wear.”

And the dancing? What was the dancing like?

“Mostly you’d just stand and shake yourself,” says Francis McKelvie.

12

Music always provided at the Barrowlands

“You know you didnea go in for the big hold yer guy and that. Well, you did the foxtrot and the waltz, ‘n that, but mostly the guys, they stood on one side, and the lassies stood on the other facing one another. Then if some guy came over and you didnae want to dance, you’d make

The iconic neon sign of the Barrowlands Ballrom some excuse. Like you’d say, ‘Oh I need to go to the loo.’ Ha ha.”

“I liked the quickstep, you know, I liked the quickstep, something fast, you know, as the lady said, at the other side was all the drivers, that was always a busy corner, but I never ventured there.”

“They’d eye you up something awful first, then they’d say, ‘are ye dancing?’

Sometimes you feel like saying, ‘you asking?’ but you didn’t, ye just get on with it. Then they might dance ye a couple of times and if they liked you, they’d make sure they got you for the last dance then they’d say, ‘can I walk ye hame? “ Like tides on the river the success of the Barrowland fluctuated, but it would always re-invent itself and rise again.

Disco came along in the mid-70’s and required acoustics that the low-ceilinged hall didn’t provide. Who can say if that was the real reason, but for a decade, having fallen into disrepair it was close to closing completely.

In 1984, Edinburgh based promoters Regular Music were looking for a suitably run down space to make a video for Scottish rockers, Simple Minds.

The single was Waterfront and the album was, Sparkle in the Rain.

In came Peter Irvine and Barry Wright from Regular Music in Edinburgh who at that time, Kerr recalls, were the only people in Scotland putting on what were considered ‘unique’ events. They were asked to source a venue for the video and the Barrowland Ballroom was it: “They went out to look at a few old churches and so forth, and low and behold, out of the blue of all the places that we thought had been mothballed, the Barrowland seemed to be on the edge of opening up. I think the owners had been on to Pete and Barry and asked them, saying, if they tidied it up at bit, would they be interested in bringing their acts there?

“So, we kind of tied in with lots of local things. We worked with a local radio station and made it a charity event. And although it was a film and a playback, we decided to set up the gear and agreed to sing a few songs for the audience who were admitted free. I think everyone would agree… it was a rollicking success.”

13

SKREAM @ SUBBY

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle) On Thursday 13th April Oliver Jones, better known as Skream, took to the Sub Club stage to play a sell- out 5 hour set.

The night kicked off at 10pm, with over 100 clubbers queuing to get the last remaining tickets on the door. The English techno DJ brought a spectacular mix of techno and house tracks to the club and definitely did not disappoint the Scottish crowd.

“His sets are always full of energy, throbbing basslines and pure genius remixes and this night was no different.”

He eased them in with some chilled techno tracks to begin his set before blasting out his most famous tune ‘You know, Right?’ sending the crowd absolutely wild. The thing about Skream is that you never know what you’re going to get - he brings the element of surprise. His sets are always full of energy, throbbing basslines and pure genius remixes and this night was no different.

“The venue was filled with sweatty ravers, all piled on”

“That classic ‘ohhh’ sound you make when a belter of a song comes on flooded the venue and everyone belted out the lyrics together.”

The last hour of Skream’s set was one incomparable to any other. He remixed Men At Work’s ‘Land Down Under’ and the screams coming from the crowd were deafening. He mixed the tune with tropical sounds and picked up the pace making it impossible not to dance. He then followed this by playing his own sped up version of The Clash’s ‘Rock The Casbah’ and it was pure genius. By this point, the atmosphere in the crowd was electric. Hands were hitting off the sub club roof as voices belted out the lyrics and feet hut off the floor. Adrenaline levels were at their highest in the crowd and everyone came together as one to celebrate the music. He then took the crowd by total surprise when he played Marvin Gaye’s ‘Aint No Mountain’. That classic ‘ohhh’ sound you make when a belter of a song comes on flooded the venue and everyone belted out the lyrics together. He then hit out with more mixes from New Order’s ‘Blue Monday’ to Dead or Alive’s ‘You Spin Me Round’.

“delivered all the crowd hoped for, and more.”

Skream definitely delivered all the crowd had hoped for and more. The night was every ravers dream from his opening track to the last chant of “One More Tune”, this night is one of many that will go down in Subby history.

As the night went on he continued to deliver the absolute best value of techno sounds to the crowd. The venue was packed with sweaty ravers all piled on and around the dancefloor raving together to the anthems he produced. Sub Club is a great venue for getting up close to DJ’s as it’s small capacity allows clubbers to stand arms length away from the DJ booth.

15

YOUR GUIDE TO THE STAG & DAGGER FESTIVAL ‘17 The Stag & Dagger aims to excite crowds again this year with their lucrative line-up of unknown gems.

We’ve handpicked a few bands who you should definitely see while you’re there.

“Crowds that can only be paralleled by London or Manchester.”

Glasgow is a city that boasts musical creations, achievements and electrifying crowds that can only be paralleled by London or Manchester. Bobby Gillespie of Primal Scream labelled Glasgow crowds as “the best in the world,” Noel Gallagher simply calls it “the bollocks.”

After all it’s the birthplace for of some of the greatest musical powerhouses, none

more so than Gallagher’s Oasis who were discovered in the famous King Tuts Wah Wah Hut in 1993. They of course conquered the world with Britpop. As for Gillespie, well, he first found fame as the drummer for Glasgow band The Jesus and Mary chain. But more notably, he got his rocks off with his own Glasgow band, Primal scream.

mark the venue locations.”

Over the years the river Clyde and musical talent seem to have symbiotically flown through the city from the artsy tenements of the West End, to the Celtic supporting Southside. And, since 2009, there’s been a festival to celebrate it.

“The festival is a Mecca for under the radar bands who are bursting from the seams with talent,”

The Stag & Dagger was originally launched in London’s east end before visiting Leeds and Glasgow in 2009, now only the Scottish edition happens annually.

The festival is a Mecca for under the radar bands who are bursting from the seams with talent, fighting to become the act that you see before they ‘make it.’

“simply buy a city map and

It also features at least one famous band.

It’s split across six venues across Glasgow starting at two in the afternoon and going till twelve in the evening. The best way to approach the festival is to simply buy a city map and mark the venue locations. Also, have a list of who’s playing at what time so no one is missed.

This year the ‘famous band’ are Aussie superstars the DMA’s. These guys are a must see, but they can also be treated as your ‘fall guy’ incase you were let down by any of the bands, but trust us, you won’t.

We’ve picked out a few one’s to watch this year so you know who to see and make your ticket worth it’s low cost.

First to be marked on your list is Sheffield quartet The Redfaces. These four youngsters rocked into 2017 with their new single ‘Kerosene.’ They spent the majority of last year touring with some of the UK’s top acts, such as the Courteeners. They also sold out a string of their own shows. Look out for their new tune ‘ain’t going down’ which sounds insane live. Catch them at Nice ‘n’ Sleazy at 7pm.

Also not to be missed are Dundee’s Model Aeroplanes. “Their self-proclaimed aim when they started out was to write great pop songs with great hooks and choruses, and in turn Model Aeroplanes combine a youthful exuberance with playing skills and a band cohesion which is testament to their lifelong friendship.” (Oran Mor) Look out for their tunes ‘Electricity’ and ‘Something like heaven.’

Your list should also include the November Lights, who self confess that their “sound is unusual for their West of Scotland roots - bleeding elements of pop and Americana, akin to artists such as One Republic and Ryan Adams and fusing them with alternative rock favorites closer to home.” Along with November lights should be ‘The CUT’.

They’re young band from the Southside whom are making waves in the Glasgow music scene, gathering an ever-growing fan base.

“Watch exclusive sets by your favourite bands in intimate and bespoke venues – and get there fast if you don’t want to miss out.”

-The Skinny

Finally, note down Brownbear. The Ayrshire band have been on the go since 2013 when they burst on to the scene with their single ‘Dead or alive’. This year is a huge year as they prepare to release their first single off their debut album. Look out for their songs ‘wandering eyes’ and ‘olive tree’, they always go down a storm. And marvel at lead singer Matthew Hickman’s ukulele skills.

The Stag & Dagger festival is starting at 2pm on Bank Holiday Sunday the 30th of April. It’s split across six venues across the city of Glasgow: Broadcast, 02 ABC, The Art School, CCA, The Priority and Nice n Sleazy.

The RedFaces will be playing the Stag & Dagger Festival

16

Get your tickets at seetickets.com

All venues are found on Sauchiehall Street

17

D A M N. KENDRICK LAMAR

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle)

Kendrick Lamar released his new album ‘Damn.’ on April 14th and it has since achieved the highest number of copies sold in a week of 2017 so far. Damn sold 603,000 copies during its first week of availability and is now Lamar’s third album to go straight to number one.

The album itself is a masterpiece of hard, thought provoking lyrics and terrifying rhythms which come together to tell the story of Lamar’s place in America. It illustrates growing up in Compton during the 90’s and visualizes being surrounded by darkness. It explores sexual tension, violence and depression and portrays Lamar’s mind is hectic, chaotic and that of a troubled genius.

Damn holds a more mellow tone compared to his previous albums such as his 2015 album ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ yet it still portrays his undeniable talent to express stories through his music. Expressing stories through his music has always been Lamar’s strong point and this album conveys just how skilled he really is.

The final track on the album ‘DUCKWORTH’ tells a visual jaw dropping story of how Lamar’s record label boss Anthony almost shot Lamar’s father in KFC years before he signed his son and how their paths then crossed again when his son met with him to record a song about it for his label. The story is told with such vision, precision and masterful lyrics that it’s hard not to believe it’s true. The song expresses how “Life is one crazy motherfucker”.

he heard the track that he wanted her to be featured on it. This song holds a much more chilled vibe and definitely represents Lamar’s new mellow approach in this album.

Other big names which are featured on the album are U2 featured on “XXX” and Zacari who is featured on “LOVE”. LOVE is a super mellow track which gives out relaxing vibes and expresses exactly what it is titled – love.

The album overall is a total masterpiece. The lyrics have been written and delivered with such precision that they allow all of Lamar’s stories to be delivered so viscerally. The mellow tone which the album holds also puts a unique twist on what is usually expected from Lamar although his usual fast, hard tracks are also still present. Following the success of Lamar’s previous album ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’ after it was ranked Top Album of 2015 by publications such as Rolling Stone, it was expected that this album could not top that success. However, Lamar has proven himself again with this magnum opus and has already hinted at new tracks he has lined up.

9/10

HUMBLE was the first track on the album to be released and shot straight to the top of the charts. The song represents the harder side of the album with its bouncing bassline and strong explicit lyrics “Bitch be humble”. It also illustrates Lamar’s rough upbringing and his mentality when facing difficult situations. DNA is another hard, fast track with solid lyrics which Lamar said was influence by legendary rapper Ice Cube’s approach to music. The song features a harsh beat which speeds up throughout the track to accompany the quick fluent lyrics which focus again on his difficult upbringing and the unfortunate events which happened in his life.

Rihanna is featured on the album in the track LOYALTY as Lamar said he knew as soon as

19

DÜST

By Ross Gilchrist (@rosswgilchrist)

Glasgow’s hip hop scene is one of the most diverse and interesting scenes in the country. Not only do we have national champion beatboxers in acts like Bigg Taj, we have Britpop bands like The Girobabies abandoning their Oasis influences in favour of rap and social commentary. “conjure

elements of early 90’s techno and live drums is not a common blend, but it’s certainly not unwelcome.”

It’s a great time to be a music fan living in the Big Smoke. Düst, of Black Lantern Music is one of those curious projects that all too often go unnoticed in Glasgow. A three-piece of synths, drums and voice, Düst have a sound that’s all to themselves. Synths that conjure elements of early 90’s techno and live drums is not a common blend, but it’s certainly not unwelcome.

“precise and effortless drumming compliments the hauntingly sparse arrangements” Drummer Ben Tokamak, whose precise and effortless drumming compliments the hauntingly sparse arrangements provided by Asthmatic Astronaut, wrapping Texture’s bars in an ice-cold blanket. You may be familiar with rapper Texture (aka, Bram E. Gieben) from his excellent solo work and possibly from his 2015 UK Slam Poetry Championship win, or at least, you should be. His poem, ‘Burn’ is one of the most powerful and dystopic dissections of failing capitalism and corporate greed you could possibly come across. His writing is akin to a great sword clearing lines of pikes. He simultaneously disarms and exposes his subject matter with huge swings of potently poisonous verbiage. As you can imagine, it was with no small amount of excitement that I queued this record up.

“Asthmatic Astronaut’s synths are cold, sparse and disparate,” Opener, ‘4.40’, is an instrumental, and a curve ball at that. If the intention behind this track is to build tension for the first words of Texture, it most certainly works. One of the most pleasant surprises of this track is the wide-open drum sound. All too often we hear modern drums compressed to the point of sacrificing tonality and dynamics, but here, the lack of overwhelming compression and EQ allows every drum on the kit to sound crisp and full, representing Tomaka’s dynamic playing in brilliant fidelity. Asthmatic Astronaut’s synths are cold, sparse and disparate, giving Tomaka enough room to play with the space between the rhythms without either musician stealing the centre of interest.

“the mood of this record has been established as cold, angry, yet reserved.”

20

It’s a cohesive and intriguing intro, but considering it’s a four-and-a-halfminute continuous pedal note (a single, continuous bass note), it’s possi-

bly a little too long and harmonically uninteresting to provide the tension it looks to. Yet, by the time we get to the waves of ‘Charlie Don’t Surf ’ and Texture’s opening salvo of, “Freedom from all prophets, freedom before profit”, the mood of this record has been established as cold, angry, yet reserved. While Texture seems to be channelling Zach de la Rocha in angry choruses, the arrangement in ‘Charlie Don’t Surf ’ is too sparse and uncomplimentary to support his barely contained rage. It’s a good track that could have been amazing if the instrumentation had perhaps been fuller and more parallel to the intent and rage of the vocal.

Asthmatic Astronaut steps into his comfort zone and delivers his most inventive work on this EP However, ‘Secret Weapons’ succeeds where the previous track fails.

Asthmatic Astronaut steps into his comfort zone and delivers his most inventive work on this EP. He plays with and not against Texture’s rhymes, filling in the holes left by the repeated refrains, yet giving Bram room enough to get the message across. It’s in this track and the follow-up, ‘One Piece’, that the EP truly finds it feet and fully realises the sound that only this band could produce. It’s a sound that’s engaging and vitriolic, yet mellow and restrained. It’s a record of sonic paradoxes, lyrical brilliance and fantastic production, let down only by the small imperfections of the opening tracks. If you are looking for an example of why Scottish hip hop is becoming a world-class scene, you need not look any further than this. At four pounds, it is a bloody steal.

PAUL WELLER Long, Long Road

5/10

By Susi Paterson Paul Weller released his new single Long Long Walk this week, accompanied by an online lyrics video. This comes in preparation for the release of his new album A Kind Revolution which is due out on 12 May. He’s already done a small UK tour, about half a dozen dates around England, and will be travelling in Europe throughout the summer months, until 2018 when he begins a UK arena tour opening in Brighton Centre on 17 February.

So far it looks as if only one date has been set for Scotland, where he will appear at SSE Hydro in Glasgow on 25 February.

The single ‘Long Long Walk’, BBC Radio 2’s featured track of the week; is a very different kind of song to what I was raised to expect from Paul Weller. This is a laid-back easy going, squidgy kind of love ballad – that says to me, ‘sit down, put your slippers on love, and I’ll make you a nice cuppa’.

With lyrics like, ‘When the road gets rough we gotta pull together’, and ‘In strangers passing by to the castles in my eyes, and in the busy streets and markets where I look for you,’ it’s disappointing to say the least. There is no upbeat, no tempo that makes me want to kick off my slippers, and get on my dancing shoes. And where has his distinctive, powerful voice gone?

Its sleepy and meandering and don’t imagine even if I hear it another twenty times, that I’ll be humming along.

I hope there’s more interesting stuff to come on the album because it’s sad that someone who once had such edgy street cred and an attitude that said, ‘I’m prickly, don’t fuck with me’, is putting out beige middle aged stuff like this.

GORILLAZ Let Me Out

10/10

By Dominic V. Cassidy (@lyre_of_apollo) The latest track to be dropped by the Gorillaz, Let Me Out – following the release of the four other tracks from their upcoming album – is a hard faced solid song, with racism in America at its bones.

The track is just as electrically infused as Andromeda and Saturnz Barz; however, at a slower pace, the song captures the listener into a gentle head bob throughout the tune. It could be easy to get lost in the gentle lullaby beat, if it were not for the bare faced, honest lyrics, courtesy of Pusha T: “Tell me there’s a chance for me to make it off the streets, tell me that I won’t die at the hands of the police, promise me I won’t outlive my nephew and my niece,” these lyrics, confronting the issue and throwing no punches, creates an almost electro-protest vibe to the song, like a space age Billy Bragg.

The song is set up with the narrative of the two featuring artists Pusha T and Mavis Staples with the former referring to Mavis as “Mama Mavis”. As the song goes on it gets more and more revolutionary almost, creating easily the most lyrically rewarding of the Gorillaz new tracks, sacrificing the dance beat and fun for thoughtfulness.

Towards the end of the song, the song almost calls for taking one’s defence into their own hands, “Tell me there’s a heaven in the sky where there is peace, but until then I’ll keep my piece at arm’s reach,” this lyric, being at the end of a verse does create a punchiness, which is not lost on the remainder of the track.

PITBULL Options

4/10

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle)

Pitbull released his new single this week “Options” which features American reggae singer Stephen Marley. The slow pop track holds a tropical ,reggae vibe brought by Stephen Marley - son of legendary singer Bob Marley.

The song is a little more relaxed than Pitbull’s’ usual tracks and holds a much slower, chilled out beat. The guitar and bass in the background of the track hold a Jamaican, holiday vibe. It is a Summer track which has been released just at the right time of the year.

However, the lyrics in the song are very basic and sound incredibly similar to the rest of Pitbull’s songs. They are based on his typical theme of girls and how many ‘Options’ he has.

The music video for the track is also very typical of Pitbull as it features the two singers dancing with girls in shorts in a Jamaican setting. It’s almost identical to every other music video Pitbull has released and does not show much creativity. The lyrics are predominantly boring and don’t hold a lot of meaning behind them.

The song overall doesn’t show a lot of creativity and sounds extremely similar to a lot of slow paced pop songs which have already been released. Pitbull should perhaps try to take a different approach on his music in the future in order to keep his music fresh and less repetitive.

Overall, after the four previously released from the imminent release of Humanz, which wet the appetites of many for more Gorrilaz the release of Let Me Out has done nothing more than set the charges finally, and if the album continues on the path the singles have drawn out, Humanz is already a strong contender for album of the year.

21

THUNDERCAT DRUNK

THE VEGAN LEATHER Shake It

9/10

TEXAS Tell That Girl

6/10

RINSE Still Wouldn’t Call

6/10

A look into one of the most promising albums of the year which, and the most bittersweet of the year; with a few hidden gems, it’s getting through the whey that is the real problem.

By Dominic Cassidy (@lyre_of_apollo) Stephen Bruner, who performs under the moniker Thundercat, has just released his third full-length studio album, Drunk. Burner is an already established bassist, playing for legendary L.A. punk outfit Suicidal Tendencies, and recently featuring on tracks for other artists, including Kendrick Lamar’s album To Pimp a Butterfly. After the rough reception of his previous studio album Apocalypse, this album can be seen as a rise in quality on an arguably lackluster discography.

By Dominic V. Cassidy (@lyre_of_apollo) Paisley disco-ish outfit The Vegan Leather are back, with their new single Shake It, which was dropped on March 17th on Spotify. The song perfectly exemplifies and moves forward from the high-intensity lyrics and disco dance tunes heard on their EP from 2015 – This House.

Drunk as far as albums go, is very odd. One of the saving graces of the album is the jazz tones and influences running through almost every track, the smooth sway is very easy listening.

The album also seems to be bleeding neon and the full-colour spectrum with the album feeling almost like an auditory kaleidoscope at times, especially through the fifth track on the album A Fan’s Mail (Tron Song Suite II). While it does offer the immediate wackiness and almost the intentional neurosis found normally in Woody Allen movies; of singing of wanting to be a cat, and the peppering’s of background meow’s the track – sadly like many on the record – wear out their welcome within a few listens.

While the album is not all sunshine and daisies, it is not without standout tracks: Lava Lamp especially gets the balance perfectly between the jazz, funk, pop, and electro elements, all with Bruner’s voice over it, where it seems like he’s looking for range that is maybe missing in other tracks on the album, which come across as bland in places. Another track that gives respite from the droning near-melancholy of the rest of the album is Tokyo, which has a constant funk buzz, and at the end of two and a half minute runtime you wish had gone on a little longer, with some genuinely funny lyrics, including the chuckle-worthy: “I’d probably hide in the suicide forest (shit!)”; and the whole track kind of speaks volumes about a hinted at weeaboo past for Bruner.

22

Tracks like Lava Lamp, Tokyo, and Friend Zone are probably the three best tracks on the album, and while it is lovely to see what the Thundercat project can do when hitting the creative marks, it feels somewhat bittersweet that the final delivery was not closer to these tracks. Even stylistically, as the tone of the more sombre songs on the album do work lyrically, it could

be argued that the drab tone with a smooth jazz background feels somewhat incongruous. One thing should be said for the featuring artists on the album, including the previously mentioned Kendrick Lamar, Wiz Khalifa, and Pharrell, is that when they do make an appearance they exist purely to increase the quality of the music, especially Kendrick’s featured track Walk On By which does seem to sample Tears for Fears’ Mad World, is a fantastically listenable song, especially Kendrick’s actual rap in the song.

Overall Drunk is an album that upon first listen, was very interesting, the lyrics were funny, not so much to the level of comedy that bands like The Lonely Island are known for, but definitely elicited more of a chuckle than some of the more serious music that is very much in vogue of the last five years, like Adele. However, once the veneer, which sadly for the majority of the album is paper thin, has worn away, the album becomes almost a chore to listen to, hard to place which track you are on sometimes, with the bass which Bruner is known for, features across the whole album with the very relaxed classically jazzy piano the music drifts into itself.

If it was not for the tracks on the album which are very listenable, the album would be deeply flawed; however with the few gems that are on the album, and the production which is often maybe not up to the level of an artist who is

himself a seasoned producer, the album does seem like a few very studio high-grade songs, randomly inter-spliced with something more akin to bedroom recordings. While the album does have a handful of standout tracks and genuinely clever lyrics scattered through the album, this is not enough to offset the abject blandness of the album, and the way it wears out its welcome before it’s over.

4/10

The song kicks off to a smooth synth piano, and gets immediately into the meat of the lyrics, singing of a failing relationship. Vocalists Gianluca and Marie’s voices come together perfectly, hitting out with personal lyrics that do not take away from the perfect disco beat, with lyrics like “I do not want this anymore, paper peeling off the walls, I can’t shake this, I can’t shake,”. The band perfectly communicate their live presence in this single, loud and constant, ready to make one want to get up and dance to the infectious noise.

The song writing in Shake It seems much more direct than other tracks previously released by the band, very much exploring a more professional vibe to the track, however the dichotomy between the somewhat sad lyrics and the super upbeat music works fantastically for the song in a stylistic sense. Upon first listen it is likely the lyrics would be missed, but it is upon the inevitable repeated listens that you start to see real depth to the music; creating an interesting song that demands to be heard.

It is clear that The Vegan Leather are on their way up, with good press coverage in publications like The Skinny, The Daily Record, and The Scotsman, and regular gigs in Glasgow, including playing Celtic Connections and a sold out club night at Broadcast. And with a new EP in the works, it is likely more energetic, high-intensity disco tunes are just around the bend.

The single is fantastic pop record that definitely shows the great things to come, the song is hopefully a trailer if you will of the upcoming, as of yet untitled Vegan Leather EP.

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98)

By Brandon Cook (@bdoncook)

Scottish veterans Texas have returned after a three-year absence with new album ‘Jump on Board.’ They’re a bound who’s always had a knack for producing some solid tunes and their sound continues to bring joy to their fans three decades after they were formed.

It’s not often you think about Stoke-on-Trent and when you do there isn’t much that immediately springs to mind. I mean, apart from being a polycentric city with a rich history of pottery, coal mining and Robbie Williams, there’s not a great deal else that comes to thought.

‘Tell That Girl’ is a catchy upbeat single and an instantly likeable song by the Scottish rockers.

With an electronic vibe the guitar beat hits you straight from the off. The strong vocals combined with the effective sound effects should go down a treat with the Texas faithful.

Thankfully that’s where RINSE comes in, a band that is sure to become the first thing you think of when Stoke is mentioned. The quartet, from the pottery capital of England, has been tipped for success since their formation in 2014 and their new single ‘still wouldn’t call’ can only help that prediction.

Game of Thrones fans actor Rory McCann, who’s better known as ‘The Hound’, is featured in the music video playing the drums, and he does so quite well! The drum beat and the catchy riff of the guitar proves to be quite the toe-tapping tune.

The chorus of “You, you gotta tell her, you’re gonna leave her” proves to be quite a catchy lyric and one you will probably end up singing along to in the shower sooner or later. But then again, what else do you expect to get from Texas.

Spiteri’s vocals remain pivotal to the likeability of the song; her strong and dominant voice coupled with the catchiness of the lyrics means new listeners would be drawn to it.

The song tells the story of someone who is unhappy with their girlfriend or wife, “If you loved her, you’d hate for her to be set free” gives the sense of searching for a new start and that the romance and love is gone.

But the lively mood of the song contrasts with the sadness of the lyrics, but in a way it kinda works. You’d be forgiven to think that it wasn’t a sad song. It’s a track that screams Texas with

The gritty guitar riffs set the tone for the whole of their new tune, which is an intriguing mix of melancholy and defiance. By that I mean, you can hear the sadness and despair through the chords of the guitar, lyrics and in some respects the beat. But you overwhelmingly feel an aura of defiance as the vocals plead to assure the listener that he ‘won’t call’.

Around one minute fifteen seconds in you’re not only hooked, but can also hear the influences for RINSE’s sound seeping through; with a very similar bridge to Catfish and the Bottlemens, 7.

The tune concludes in the same manner it started, sombre and edgy but with the accolade of describing one man’s roaring persistence of not giving his ex the time of day.

Overall it’s a very well written track whose lyrics paint the picture perfectly, making this a very catchy anthemic rock ballad. If anyone can do it in a cold rainy night in Stoke, it’s these guys. Or as Far Out Magazine said: “It won’t be long until they’re common knowledge.”

Watch this space.

Spiteri sounding as good as she’s ever been.

23

LANA DEL RAY

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS

Lust For Life

KASABIAN

Are You Looking ForAction

Rain In Soho

8/10

8/10

9/10

JAMES BLUNT AFTERLOVE

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98)

By Susi Paterson Lana del Rey’s second single Lust for Life is released this month from her next album, is great. Drawing comparisons to the story of the Hollywood suicide, Peg Entwistle, who jumped from the H of the sign back in 1932, del Rey’s lyrics lean heavily towards conjuring up the story of the young starlet who climbed to the top of the H and jumped off, killing herself at the age of 24.

Featuring LeWeeknd, aka Abel Tesfaye who also appears with her in the video, del Rey looks as if she has totally made this song her best yet and sings in a nihilistic whisper, with a catchy hook and lyric, ‘Take off, take off, Take off all your clothes’. Her voice prompts memories of the light-as-air touches of Kate Bush and the Cocteau’s in here, making me want stop what I’m doing and lean in to listen closer.

The video imagery is a little fantastic with everything black and white except for the red dress del Rey is wearing, and the verse and chorus merge together, bursting with harmonies and synths.

There is no crescendo, just a slow strip-tease of four and a half minutes of unhurried seduction.

It looks like a tragic romance, and when you hear her whisper, ‘In these stolen moments/ The world is mine’ it hardly feels like anyone here has a ‘lust for life’.

But besides a title borrowed from Iggy Pop, if you love Lana del Rey, you will forgive the rhyming lyrics that don’t work and the lack of subtly on this track, because the chances are that this is an anthem that will make it to radio.

This track, this soon to be released album, could be what it will take to move her from the indie pop associations she has had until now, and see her make it as a more pervasive Gaga-esque type artiste.

24

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle)

By Dominic Cassidy (@Lyre_of_Apollo)

Kasabian Are You Looking For Action Nicolle Cassels Kasabian’s new single “Are You Looking For Action?” was released this week from their new album “For Crying Out Loud”. The track is the second single to be released from the new album which will also be available from next week.

The song previews a glimpse of what can be expected from the follow up to the 2014 album ‘48:13’ and if this track is anything to go by then it looks like it’s shaping up to be a brilliant one.

Lead guitarist, Serge Pizzorno, has said that the new album is about “saving guitar music was the abyss”. The first track to be release from the album, “Your in Love With A Psycho” has a much more typical Kasabian sound to it yet it still remains just as chilled as the new release ‘Are You Looking For Action’.

It seems Kasabian have taken a completely new approach when producing this track as the song is much more relaxed when compared to their previous releases. The song is almost comparable to those by legendary 80’s band Primal Scream with its funky drum beat and belting guitar in the background. The track has a new jazz vibe to it as it features saxophones and a groovy drum beat. The track has a cheery upbeat rhythm and even the lyrics have a jazzy ring to them “Everybody pop now to the bassline”.

The song is based on starting a riot and getting everyone involved in the chaos and overall getting in on some action as the title states. The lyrics speak about smashing bottles, getting high and going mental to the sound of the music.

The band are also set to headline Scotland’s new TRNSMT festival on Saturday July 8th where they will perform tracks from their new

The second single to be dropped from The Mountain Goats forthcoming album Goths; Rain in Soho presents a sweeping, dark orchestral sound, with beautiful lyrics common with frontman John Darnielle’s music: It demands to be heard. It beckons you to come, and sit and be with it.

album which will be available May 5th.

Rain in Soho, is the better track of the two to be dropped from Goths, and that only attests to how predictably fantastic the band are; and if Andrew Eldritch is Moving back to Leeds, and Rain in Soho are anything to go by, Goths will be a thoughtful, dark and beautiful album.

Goths, to be released on the 28th of May, is an offshoot of the regular Mountain Goats sound, it features no guitars, like at all. And for an indie folk band you would be right in assuming that this is a huge mainstay in the regular productions by Darnielle.

The differences between Rain in Soho and the previous track released from the album, Andrew Eldritch is Moving Back to Leeds, is vastly and immediately apparent. Where Andrew Eldritch had a more chipper, lighter tone, with bright pianos; Rain in Soho is different, harsh pianos push themselves upon the listener throughout, and the punchy, slow drums and symbals come and go in moments of high tension.

The song tells more of an abstract story, concerning nominally rain in Soho; this is first apparent with the verse: “There’s a club where you’d like to go, you could meet someone lost like you, revel in the darkeness like a pair of open graves, fumble through the fog for a season or two.” The song concerns the lack of life, making it seem like the world is in Soho, and the short life of what you will find there. With Darnielle’s conversational vocals layered over themselves many times, gives the song a more ethereal, dreamlike quality; and does take away what would have been a quietly unsettling, apocalyptic sound.

Everyone’s favourite guilty pleasure musician James Blunt has returned with his new album ‘The Afterlove.’

The British singer takes a risk and experiments to fit in with the mainstream music lover. Yet he does so in a way that isn’t selling his soul to the pop gods, he retains what’s made Blunt so listenable and likeable.

“His music has on the whole stayed pretty much the same.”

Recently, Blunt has gained his popularity through his hilarious Twitter replies to users giving him hate. But although he seems to have reinvented his image, his music has on the whole stayed pretty much the same.

“sad and depressing.”

His first song ‘Love Me Better’ sounds like a classic James Blunt number, sad and depressing.

He even references his infamous hit ‘You’re Beautiful’: “Would’ve said you’re beautiful but I’ve used that line before.” But just when you think this is vintage Blunt, the chorus takes you by surprise. Blunt seems to have adopted a watered-down tropical house melody, which wouldn’t look out of place being played in The Garage in Glasgow. Suddenly you’re thinking is this really James Blunt?

“the Blunt sound we all know and secretly love.”

But then reassuringly ‘Bartender’ returns to the Blunt sound we all know and secretly love.

A depressed Blunt sings about drinking with an ex with ‘Bartender, can you pass some love?’ sensing poor Blunt isn’t having the best of times. But the song on the whole carries another catchy beat but one that still manages to remain upbeat throughout a sad song.

The new tropical house vibe continues in ‘Loose My Number’ another predictably sad song, which is about a paranoid James Blunt wondering why he’s being patched off his burd.

“Everyone knows I’m jealous.” But another catchy beat makes the song instantly likeable.

“a hopeful song about finding love, surprisingly.”

An emotional piano number of ‘Don’t Give Me Those Eyes’ follows with Blunt longing for someone he can’t have. ‘Someone Singing Along’ see’s a return to his trusty guitar, this time with a hopeful song about finding love, surprisingly. Its Blunt at his best, with the piano and orchestra giving a great emotional effect to the single, it definitely tugs on the heart strings.

“It catches you off guard” ‘California boasts a deep prolonged intro with a continuous beat that lasts the song; it’s a different vibe. It catches you off guard just as it does with ‘Love Me Better’ but it not for the first time see’s Blunt experiment with a tune not known by him before. You can tell OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder is on production with a Maroon 5 esc song. However the return to the guitar in the latter of the single establishes it as another soppy number, a tribute to his love.

‘Time of Our Lives’ was co-written by chart sensation Ed Sheeran, but you wouldn’t know it. It’s a similar song to ‘Love Me Better’ but slightly more upbeat.

Same could be said for ‘Paradise’ with the reiterating theme seeming to be one of reminiscence but it’s the passionate mood that still makes it listenable.

Before paradise however ‘Heartbeat’ is an instant toe tapper, in the song its as if he calls for strength and approval with the lyrics “even if some notes are wrong, I’m hoping someone’s singing along, cause just one voice is not enough, I need to hear from everyone.” A true Blunt song nonetheless.

But before you know it ‘Courtney’s Song’ brings you back to being sad and depressed in a song about his affection and his love for ‘Courtney’ and him letting go and accepting she will never be his.

‘2005’ is a song that references his well-known hit and the song that guarantees his legacy, ‘You’re Beautiful.’ The single references this “I’m not gonna lie, say it didn’t work out, because I live in a big house, made a few pounds.”

But the song is about how he can’t eclipse it, and how he wishes he could.

The album finishes with single ‘Over’ which is another upbeat number, this time about a

breakup. The song takes relatively laid-back approach to what should be a sad song, but it works.

If you look at the charts, ‘The Afterlove’ isn’t the most popular album by Blunt. Both ‘Back To Bedlam’, and ‘All The Lost Souls’ both got to number one in the charts. With then both spending a combined 11 weeks at the top spot.

‘Some Kind Of Trouble’ managed to reach the peak position of fourth, ‘Moon Landing’ reached second but ‘The Afterlove’ has only managed to peak at sixth in the charts.

“maintains the rainy day, depressing and romantic mood” However, the album is perfect if you’ve been a James Blunt fan through the years, it maintains the rainy day, depressing and romantic mood that fans have become accustomed to throughout the years. Blunt will forever be known for ‘You’re Beautiful’ as he peaked early in his musical career. But ‘The Afterlove’ is a brave attempt to gain relevance in 2017. Blunt has experimented and taken himself out of his comfort zone, and it has produced some spectacular results with some catchy songs, ones that new listeners could get addicted to. It also maintains the DNA that he has become known for in his albums. The ‘Afterlove’ signifies a new James Blunt, one that is more than capable to stake his claim in the world of ever changing modern music.

7/10

25

RICHARD ASHCROFT Live In Glasgow

6/10

GLASS ANIMALS Live In Edinburgh

8/10

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98)

By Dominic Cassiy (@lyre_of_apollo)

The ex-Verve frontman returned to the stage with his new album, ‘These People.’ This time, it was Ashcroft’s debut at the Hydro as he graced the buzzing Glasgow crowd.

In the months since the release of Oxford indie rockers Glass Animals second album and an energised touring schedule – with more to come – I was finally able to catch them live, at The Liquid Room in Edinburgh.

Although it was a solo gig, Ashcroft stayed true to his Verve roots playing seven songs including much loved ‘Sonnet’, ‘This Is How It Feels’, ‘Lucky Man’, ‘The Drugs Don’t Work’ and ‘Bitter Sweet Symphony.’

He joined the long line of previous acts who declared their love for the city, previously stating that he felt more loved in Glasgow than he did in his homeland of England. He repaid his love with an outstanding set, mixing old classics with his new sound.

As the set progressed, new single ‘Everybody Needs Somebody To Hurt’ gave fans a sample of his new album, which went down a treat before taking them back to the music he’s known for with ‘Velvet Morning.’

The finale proved to be something to behold for Verve fans, ‘Lucky Man’ ended the set before an encore consisting of ‘History’, ‘C’mon People (We’re Making It Now)’, ‘The Drugs Don’t Work’ and Bitter Sweet Symphony’ closed the show with the Glasgow crowd in full voice creating an atmosphere only a Glasgow crowd can create.

First off, Glass Animals come alive when they play in front of a crowd, nothing is lost from their electric, synth-based sound in a live setting; they played with a pop induced tenacity that infected the crowd immediately with the first song. The first single they played from their acclaimed sophomore album How to be a Human Being was, Life Itself. Even through a small technical hiccup meant frontman Dave Bayley’s guitar wasn’t working, the guitarist’s high octane dancing helped get the crowd enthused, with two keyboards, drums, and a synthesizer.

The band’s energy did not stop or fizzle out, in fact, the palpable energy and waves of fun sweeping over the crowd kept everything moving in just the right way. For me, the standout track was Season 2 Episode 3 with its chill slow moments and thumping chorus, it worked perfectly with the crowd.

One thing that came across very well was the level of mutual love and respect the band and fans had for each other. Songs like Agnes elicited the crowd to sing along word for word; even Bayley’s small conversation with a member of the crowd, saying that they had “Brought his favourite fruit,” and that he had one with him too, referring to the pineapple on the stage, pleased the crowd as they launched into prog rock sounding Pork Soda.

After the success of Zaba, and the critical acclaim of How to be a Human Being, it would be hard to imagine Glass Animals will not continue this upward climb towards bigger crowds and better albums.

THE WHO Live In Glasgow

7/10

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98) The Who returned to Glasgow, home of many Who shows over the years, after rescheduling the tour last year.

This would be the second time that The Who would play the SSE Hydro as they previously played there in 2014. This time round, they were originally meant to play in August 2016 but rescheduled to unveil a new set. This included a new acoustic version of their rock opera ‘Tommy’.

The rock legends were supported by Standard Lamps who warmed up the near sold out crowd. As The Who came on stage Pete was met with the roar of a Glasgow crowd who were up for the occasion.

“It seems like only yesterday we were here before… So glad to be back!”

Roger and Pete gave a tribute to the Glasgow crowd and praised the city, repeating “we don’t care what you do Scotland, we still love you” referring to the recent political climate.

The Who played all their hits with ‘The Seeker’, ‘Who Are You’, ‘I Can See For Miles, ‘My Generation’ and ‘Pinball Wizard’ all featured as well as hits from the fan favourite album ‘Tommy.’

The crowd were on their feet from the off and if they weren’t they would be up standing for the dramatic finale with ‘Baba O’Riley’ and ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again.’

The Who don’t to enjoy the whole encore ‘thing’ but instead they un-expectantly launched into a number of “5:15” to bring to an end a fine set by the London rockers.

ELROW MAKES UNFORGETTABLE SCOTTISH DEBUT

By Nicolle Cassells (@cassells_nicolle)w Elrow made it's Scottish debut this month as they brought their famous theme of Sambodromo De Brasil to SWG3 in Glasgow on the 18th & 19th of March. The lineup for this event would give any raver goosebumps with Glasgow's own Jackmaster back to back with Denis Sulta headlining both Saturday and Sunday night and Jasper James joining them on the Sunday.

Elrow is a Barcelona based company who are best known for their ridiculous decorations and arrangement of top class DJs. The company definitely go the extra mile to produce these spectacular nights and make them unforgettably for ravers.

Although you think you know what to expect with the confetti, decorations, toys, inflatables and stilt walkers, you don’t. You will still find yourself standing in the middle of the dancefloor with

28

your mouth wide open as you watch the madness unfold around you. The chaos your about to witness will leave you feeling inflated and a little bit mental. Your about to let go of everything, release your inner child and see things that will leave you tripping out your mind.

So this is how the night went. As clubbers arrived at the venue they were greeted by a carnival vibe and scenes of madness. The 2 storey warehouse was decorated head to toe with inflatable trees, mystical creatures and if you thought they saw a banana swinging from the ceiling, you weren't tripping.

The venue was barely recognizable as it had been transformed into a jungle from ravers to get lost in.

What makes Elrow so special is the extent of imagination that gets put into producing these nights.

Where else would you find a dancing monkey on stilts holding an inflatable car? The other thing which makes Elrow so unique is

the music. Elrow hires the absolute best range of techno and house DJs to play at their shows and for Glasgow this was no different.

Now for the music. Jackmaster opened up the stairs at 7pm with a bouncing set of both house and techno tracks to get the night started. He didn’t get too crazy with the tunes because the venue wasn’t full yet as most clubbers like to arrive a little later to these events to ensure they can dance their feet off until the final song.

His tracks were a little more on the chilled side but would still get your feet tapping. This set was a taster for the clubbers to catch a glimpse of the magic which they were about to experience downstairs when Jackmaster hut the decks with Denis Sulta at 12.

Moving downstairs into the TV Studio the carnival vibes were bursting everywhere as ravers jived to Bastain Bux ,Robert James and De La Swing for 5 hours straight. Inflatable lilos, strawberries, palm trees , beer cans and other crazy objects swarmed through the air in the hands of clubbers as they experienced the magic of Elrow. The atmosphere in the room got bigger by the hour as more ravers flushed into the venue to join the explosive party. This was a sell - out event so the place was packed with ravers covered in glitter and fancy dress all dancing and screaming as they felt the bass of the dance tracks hitting them.

The basslines, claps and melodies came belting out the SWG3 speakers until finally the much anticipated wait for Jackmaster and Denis Sulta was over.

The pair completely stole the show as they hit out with their original techno tracks as well as some old school dance classics. As the two took to the stage opening with Denis Sultas' 'It's Only Real' , a swarm of massive stilt walkers ,dancing monkeys and ladyboys came jumping and dancing through the crowd of 1000 ravers. It was a rare sight to see. Flashes of purple, red, blue , yellow and green blinded ravers as the LED lights danced along with the music. Adrenalin levels were at an ultimate high in the room as everyone buzzed off each others' excitement and they felt the banging bass of the tunes hitting off the concreate ground. Next came the confetti which blasted out from the stage all the way to the back of the crowd when the old classic tune ' Put Em High' came blazing through the speakers. Hands swung up in the air when this track hut the crowd and the feeling between ravers was incredible. There's something about old dance tracks that Scottish clubbers love, it brings them together and send them absolutely mental. The pair kept the tunes coming all night and so did the whistles, screams and dancing from the crowd as the stilt walkers and inflatables swarmed through them.

Finally at 2 o'clock, just when we thought the tunes couldn’t get any better the pair closed with Daft Punks 'One More Time' - an absolute dance anthem.

Phones shot up in the air between the jungle leaves

and bananas being thrown to record the final song and everyone came together to belt out the lyrics and dance like crazy one last time.

The night was completely mental but in the best possible way. At Elrow you will find yourself dancing with strangers and seeing sights you wouldn’t believe.

The buzz you felt from last night will still be with you in the morning and your feet will still be tapping on the way to work on Monday , no matter how much of a comedown you have.

Elrow definitely made its mark on Scotland and we hope the night of madness will make a return soon.

29

In Conversation With BROWNBEAR

We spoke to the lead singer of Brownbear, Matt Hickman, about Michael Jackson, musical influences, and what we can expect from their debut album. We previewed their upcoming single ‘Covers,’ due out next month. or Alive’ isn’t in there. My view is, we did it as our first single and it stood itself. To redo it for the album would mean changing it for the sake of it. Two mistakes bands make all the time is: trying to do a song over and over again and ruining it; and secondly, not believing in their new material.”

tion which strangely works well, you’ll be humming ‘and I pull back the covers...’ in your sleep.

“Dead or Alive had completely different production to what the album has had, so I feel like it’d be a bit like saying ‘oh we don’t trust in our new songs.’ I can only hope that folk will look through iTunes or Spotify when the album is out and find ‘Dead or Alive’ and think; ‘what’s this.’ We’re still going to play it live obviously; they’ll still hear it at shows.”

“At the time I was with a girl and we were slowly deteriorating and I was beginning to think she might even be seeing someone else, just a pure gut feeling. I didn’t literally pull back the covers, thank God, that would be like something from a gruesome horror film.”

Matt talked about how, for the band, playing new material was imperative, especially at gigs; after touring with The Views’ Kyle Falcnor.

By Brandon Cook (@bdoncook) Brownbear have used the past few years to gain valuable experience touring with rock royalty; releasing a string of singles and of course performing to crowds at their own sell out gigs.

After a yearlong break, the boys hit the studio to record their long awaited debut album. A record that lead singer, Matt Hickman, says he has “a lot of faith in” “We didn’t make an album full of singles, we made an album which is a collection of songs that are related and, if you will, have a common theme. All the songs make sense to each other; they’re all related in a way. It all sounds right.”

Brownbears philosophy of ‘if it doesn’t fit then it’s not going in’ is taken very seriously. Proof of that lies solely in the confirmation that their first ever, and arguably most famous, single Dead or Alive won’t be included in the album.

Matt said:

30

“People who have seen us live will recognize some of the songs (in the album). But, ‘Dead

Thankfully the lyrics of ‘pull back the covers’ is just a metaphor for the suspected cheating, Matt joked that he didn’t literally catch anyone red handed:

“The song actually started because I was singing the chorus in the car and sometimes as a writer you think of a line, I was singing like ‘cover and lovers,’ it sort of developed from that.”

Over the years Brownbear have developed an “When you’ve got a new song and you think ‘is alternative acoustic/folk rock vibe over the past it any good,’ the best way to judge that is to go few years, something, which Matt agrees, are the up and play it in front of the crowd with just bands “own distinctive sound.” Yet the music you and the guitar.”

Matt grew up listening to is a complete different shade of music to what he plays: “The Kyle (Falcnor) tour showed me which songs work and which don’t, by the end I was “I grew up very much a student of rock music, able to adjust my set to suit. If you play a new I love the Foo Fighters, Metallica and bands like song off the cuff and the crowd go wild then that. I used to kick about with the black sweatyou’re on to a winner cause that’s up against bands on. But I’m not very metal orientated as more established tunes.” a writer, when I began writing songs, they just didn’t come out like that.”

The lessons learned from that tour differed from the lessons the band learned when touring with bigger teams, like the tour with the Libertines last month. Matt said: “Different tours teach you different things.

Big tours, like the libertines, taught us a lot about being professional. And then the Kyle tour obviously I learned a lot about playing in front of intimate crowds and reading the room, connecting with an audience. I had the best time on that tour because I had so many people that I’d just chat to after shows and getting to find out what they liked about the show if they enjoyed it.”

One of the new songs the band will be eager to play is ‘Covers,’ the first single off the album.

It’s a very upbeat and catchy tune that has the classic Brownbear acoustics; however, it also boasts sobering lyrics that describe the mental unrest of a cheated boyfriend. The combina-

“I also love Michael Jackson, especially the Thriller album. That album broke boundaries; it went so much further than the music. It was the first time an African American had been listed on TV; he broke down that relevance for everyone. At the time he had the dark skin and the Afro, I can relate to that part.”

“I think great records have more than just the music. People never really know where to place our music and I think that’s a good thing.”

As for now, Brownbear admitted you’d find a different type of music on his recently played: “I’ve been listening to a lot of Kendrick Lamar at the moment, and Alicia Keys new album. Both of those have total jazz vibes between them that’s what’s catching my ears I think.”

Transpiring through a range of genres whilst retaining a core Brownbear sound seems to be essential for the band. Matt told how there’s a song on the album which has a “tip of the hat to mowtown,” a genre which he admits is “his thing.” He also told how we could expect a bit of country in there as well:

“We had a guitar player play as a guest in a few songs who used to play in a band called whiteout- they were pretty big in the Britpop era. He’s an amazing country player and he did this cool country riff over one of the songs. It just sounded right, man, so we were like ‘let’s just do it.’”

The album is sure to please ears of all music backgrounds and will be available sometime in early autumn. As for the new single, Covers, you can catch that in May. Something that we recommend you definitely check out.

Brownbear are playing a few live shows including the Stag and Dagger festival on 30th of April, before they begin touring for the album. Be sure to keep updated with the band through social media.

Twitter: @brownbearband Facebook: @brownbearofficial

31

TRANSPARENCY AND FIRE ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL Ross Gilchrist (@rosswgilchrist) Politics and music have always intertwinedSometimes comfortably, sometimes controversially. Thinking of the connections conjures up both wistful images of Bob Dylan surrounded by placards when cast into his most uncomfortable role as poet laureate of the 60’s protest movement, and the cringe-worthy images of Noel Gallagher rubbing shoulders with Tony Blair on that election night in 1997. The value in the tradition of merging politics with music will always open debate.

Some decry musicians involving themselves in politics as unwelcome, under qualified idealists with no head for policy, whereas some would champion the belief that career politicians hold less interest in representing their constituents than advancing in their status.

Either way, it takes a tremendous amount of courage for a musician to through their proverbial hat into the political arena. One such musician is the Ayr-born folk singer, Little Fire, known on the campaign trail as, independent candidate for Ayrshire North, Jamie McGeechan.

“Initially, I thought the idea was ridiculous, I thought about doing it four years ago and I wasn’t mature enough. I mean, I’m 31 years old, even on the leaflets I still look really youthful and you’re still going to get older voters going, ‘Look at him, he’s just a wee boy, what

life experience does he have?’”

Yet, such an assumption would be misguided, under his stage name, ‘Little Fire’, McGeechan has achieved much more in his 31 years than many achieve in their lifetime. He is an ambassador for World Peace Tartan, and he has played hundreds of gigs around the UK and at the time of this article has just returned from one of his many adventures to New York and will be returning to America soon to play gigs in Ohio.

“I’m sure there are other things I could be doing for myself, like just pushing the music, but I kind of feel that there’s this real disengagement from the council in general and I just think it’s this beast that’s shrouded in secrecy and you don’t get to know what’s going on behind closed doors.”

“I suppose there’s been a few incidences for me over the last 1, 2, 3 years where I’m seeing things happen in organisations and totally disagreeing with either the nepotism, or the corruption, or the pomposity in comparison to what they actually do. I want organisations to work for people and not stiff them, basically. Like South Ayrshire council having 40-50 employees on 50, 60 grand or whatever, rather than us just sticking our heads in the sand or just letting them all away with it, I think it’s absolutely the right thing to be involved and to be as transparent as possible. I mean, if I get in, I would like all the council meetings to be

streamed online like they do at Holyrood. Let’s let people see exactly what’s being done in their name.”

“To be free from partisan politics, telling people I would be an independent representative for their views and acting as a sort of bull**** filter, rather than the, ‘blame everybody else’s party except from mine’ thing. That’s why I’m so big on the transparency, because I genuinely want to hold people to account for what they say they are doing in the name of the public. I don’t even want to be a politician, I just want to be an everyday person but in the council and encouraging people to be completely forthright in what they’re doing. It’s not a big ask.”

“I doubt myself all the time. I love life, I love humans, I love taking the chance to try and be something. I don’t want to feel like I’m incapable of anything. Self-doubt is a huge motivator.

There’s a lot of disengaged Labour voters, for sure, who aren’t sure what to do in the context of the General election, I would hope people were more engaged than ever, but it seems so many people are fed with it. No one should be fed up of the right to vote. Maybe their upset about not getting the result they want. But I think people underestimate the value their own the value they can bring to things changing, it’s easy to feel that you’re just one person [saying], ‘what difference will my vote make? My life will be the same’ and while in some ways they’re right, in many ways they’re wrong.”

Local council elections take place on Thursday, May 4th 2017.

33

A SIT DOWN, AND A CHAT WITH CRYWANK

In a small room, above a wee vegan bistro, the Manchester Punk-Folk band Crywank headlined; a very regular fixture in the Glasgow music scene, playing a few times a year even though they hail from a city hundreds of miles away. They played a genuine, heartfelt, heartbreaking and all together marvlous set. Dan, who plays drums for the bamd was no there due to an ankle injury, the lyrics of Crywank and the chill Spanish guitar-ish sounds filled the room. Afterwards I managed to get a sit down with James Clayton, singer, guitarist and songwriter of Crywank.

(Interview conducted on the 4th of February)

By Dominic Cassidy (@lyre_of_apollo) Q: you were recently covered by Noisey for your new music video, which was originally released on the split with Nyla, do you have plans to release the others songs from the split?

A: No, no, no that was – out of all the songs on the split, I think that’s the strongest one, and like it was just the point that we were offered the video, and they were like “do you have any spare songs?” and I was like “no I don’t, I got nothing” and we were maybe gonna record one for it, but it got to the point we were running out of time, so I was like we don’t have anything for you, we have this song from the split, but I get if you don’t want it, it was recorded in a bedroom, and he was like “no this songs great, I wanna use it the videos going ahead” and the next thing I know ‘n yno they wanted my input but I thought it would be best if I just let the director have their own sort of thing, if it was a separate thing, yno if I was to put a remit down it would make things I could be disappointed with, or things like that, or things - - I get dominating with creative control I either have to get rid of everything or get full control. It just turned up and it was a way higher standard than I ever thought, and it was set up with Noisey to have an exclusive, which was weird because large publications never come at me, I have a stupid name and probably too DIY but yno get millions in albums and they don’t care, you gotta do PR but I do don’t do that so they don’t come at you unless you do PR Q: A few months ago you released a video for the JC and the Nobodies song Treehorn A: OH YEA Q:, I was wondering if you had any plans to release to release future music videos

34

A: Yea we had some students get in touch wanting to do one for their A-levels so there’s that, and there’s a girl in China who’s making one for us, but she’s really busy she might not

get it done, but in regards to the band we’re recording a new album soon I’d quite like to have some done for that, I’m actually quite into music videos, but the nature of the music it would either be a literal interpretation which would be quite cheesy, or me looking into a camera which would be quite cheesy so I specifically wanted to be done where the video could stand alone and not take away from the song or illustrate the song, it would probably be a pile of mess but I’m fine with mess, the Treehorn video was quite messy Q: you mentioned your new album which you said might drop at the end of the year, you played a couple of the songs from your set there, you played orange binge, which – not the subject matter – but the tone of the song was quite dark, it was quite reminiscent of Langdon Alger, is there a mix of songs or is it more dark songs?

A: it will probably be the most incoherent album we’ve put out it has a lot of different sounds, it has a lot of different sounds, a lot of different lyrical content, it doesn’t follow a single theme, everything that follows a theme is for the sixth album, everything following a theme has been put aside to that, everything else has been conglomerated into this area, so this should probably be the most experimental thing we’ve done, I don’t expect many people to go wild over it especially earlier fans, it has a lot of faster punkier influences, a lot of the songs are a lot darker as well Q: Have you any plans to do a US tour?

A: I’m trying, a get emails all the time, people saying their gonna help, and I get excited and then it doesn’t happen, I get really frustrated cause most of the fan are in the USA but it never normally happens, there’s some people we’re talking to but it never normally happens; I’m trying to get my hopes up, but the plan is, US tour, Australia tour, Canada tour, South America tour, there’s fans there I wanna get to and I wanna play for them.

Q: It’s obvious you really care about your fans, the song orange binge, it’s like the subject matter is really personal, and it was

clear a lot of people in the crowd really associated with it, which is something in Scotland certainly small bands aren’t doing, how do you find that as a songwriter releasing songs like that?

A: intensely difficult, like uh I always tell myself its my duty to explain the song and like I find it very odd because I’ve never been overtly queer with the band its been more so about mental health, but the band definitely developed a very big trans following, big queer following, a lot of followers with BPD and things like that, it definitely caters to a lot of identities and personality types, its got to the point that I like to express myself but if I don’t give it context maybe like the politiscim isn’t there or something, just if me sharing something can make someone feel more normal I feel an obligation to share it but I do find it incredibly hard and I hate doing it a lot of the time, I’m not someone who’s the most honest about their feelings toward gender or sexuality or things like that, I feel like I’m quite naturally paranoid, but I also feel like its something I should do if I feel that way, id rather be empowering people rather than allowing my own personal disempowerment vicariously reach out to people, so its one of things where I wanna say I’m proud but I’m so self hating, but I wanna be honest so that’s how it is Q: You tour a lot in Scotland for a Manchester band - A: I like coming to Scotland, a much better response in Scotland, not even in gigs, even walking about the city, asking for directions is like talking to a long lost friend. I’m from Barnsley I’m a skinny guy I’ve got long hair, I’ve had guys calling me a fag start attacking me I’ve had shit shouted at me, in a big city and people are easier and nicer you can go up to somewhere wearing something quite abnormal and they wont make a fuss out of it, and I get that more in Scotland more than anywhere else, and there’s a bigger embracement of the DIY scene here. You go down south and – I specifically get trouble down south, cause I called out a band down south for sexism, ingrained in the punk scene, so there’s a lot of venues that wouldn’t put me on, because of that, its

just one of those things the punk scene likes to put across its anti sexism anti racism but if you actually internally call it out people very often fluctuate towards who their friends are and you will have negative effects on your band, there’s but you know I don’t wanna be put on by fucking arseholes so I’m fine with that. But up north, north of England sort of Durham area or Scotland, because people tend to tour the bottom of the country people are just happy you came up, there’s more inclusivity up north, there’s less of a separation between a queer punk scene and a punk scene I’ve noticed that more down south where the two scenes sort of split but I’ve noticed up north people tend to integrate which is legit, I enjoy it, so I guess I’m more drawn to Scottish shows because of that.

Q: You get referred to a lot as anti folk, is that the label you would apply yourself ?

A: I don’t know I just play acoustic guitar and its definitely not folk, I don’t like the connotations that come with singer songwriter, folk punk sort of makes a sense but it also has a sort of tropey “WOOOOAH!, and I definitely have influences from certain areas, more American than British, I definitely have influences from folk punk but I don’t wanna follow those tropes, this sounds really arrogant but I feel more punk folk than folk punk, I feel like folk punk as a genre has loads of restricting limitations of what your supposed to sound like, whereas punk folk is someone making acoustic folky music influenced by punk. I listen to a lot of power violence bands, hardcore bands, more so recently but at different points, I try and transpose those sorts of things and not necessarily, I take a lot of influence from bands like the urinals and bands like that, um and noise rock and things like that, anti folk for me is just an easy term, lyrically there’s just a lot of things that go on within anti folk, musicians like Kimmy Dawson and Jeffrey Lewis and Beck, and I feel like I do correlate with them to a degree more so with them than traditional folk musicians, musically I think I’m less twee, but I cant say, probably applies to the earlier albums than the later ones

James and Dan, of Crywank

Q: Finally, what is your desert island band?

A band that you could listen to forever, no other band A: Oh that’s really hard I have two, I have two, I’m immediately fluctuating towards my two childhood bands which were really into Modest Mouse when I was 12 I got Antarctica and The Moon, really into Modest Mouse, Sufjan Stevens as well, but I’m not keen on the entire discography, same with modest mouse I’m not as keen on their later stuff. So uh I find it really hard to say ill say Yann Tiersen, I’ve never grown tired of Yann Tiersen I’ve not listened to Yann Tiersen in two years but the whole concept of desert island makes me think Yann Tiersen is who id like on my desert island, probably focusing too much on the desert island aspect, but I think Yann Tiersen would cheer me up on a desert island.

“Don’t Piss on Me I’m Already Dead” 2016

35

REDFACES

BY Brandon Cook (@bdoncook) It’s fair to say 2016 was a whirlwind packed with highs and lows which, in retrospect, defined the year.

Those who survived 2016 were simply left to pick up the pieces to carry on to this year, in the hope for something better. Thankfully, there’s a band that aim to become your ‘something better’ and are already making waves in these early days of 2017: Or as they put it: “Guitars can seem rarer than hope. RedFaces are rarer still.”

These young rock n rollers from Sheffield spent 2016 supporting some of the countries’ top acts, learning their trade the ‘traditional way’ and building their ever-growing fan base.

They also performed for sold out home crowds and played a string of summer festivals.

This year, they’re focusing on producing new music. Their first single ‘Kerosene’ is their first since their demo Katie come home in 2014, and it’s a fucking belter.

The band spoke of the reception the single has received: “Brilliant! It’s going really well at the moment, we are so glad to have a new song out for people to hopefully enjoy.”

36

Kerosene has a very Kasabian esque vibe to it, with the lyrics ‘cmon why don’t you be so cool’ sounding on similar wavelengths to LSF. It’s

an intriguingly dark and gritty tune that’s unrecognisable when sized up against their last release. The boys explained: “Well Katie Come Home was written a while ago and our influences have inevitably grown and changed so I guess that’s why it sounds different. Also Katie Come Home was only a demo so the production and the sound of the track are different. We feel we have matured and for the better.”

From a young age the band have taken inspiration from the likes of the Beatles and Oasis, however, as they have developed; their spectrum of influencers has progressed; self confessing that they are not resting for a single type of music. The boys said: “I think we have found a sound that we love but we are always changing, we can’t imagine ourselves just settling on one sound and style for the rest of our lives. We are influenced by bands and writers all the time.”

The youngsters have only just finished their A-levels, however, their accolades surpass some bands that have been around for twice their years.

Last year the lads supported both the DMA’s in their Edinburgh show and the Courteeners in their gig at Newcastle. The Sheffield boys were also included in Spotify’s one to watch playlist and were featured in Huw Stephens’ BBC Introducing Show.

Check out their new single Kerosene on Spotify & follow the RedFaces on social media to be the first to know about any shows near you.

Twitter: @RedFacesMusic Facebook: @redfacesmusic

THE NEW HELFIRE CLUB Fighting Clandestine Saboteurs and Capitalist Cynicism in the Glasgow Music Scene

BY Ross Gilchrist (@rosswgilchrist) Being in a band is difficult. Promoters can, and will, take advantage of inexperience, using their clout and brand name to maximise their profit and minimise the effort required to increase that profit, often at the expense of bands who don’t know any different. In the past, “Pay to Play” was the economic model promoters use to exploit bands. “Pay to Play” was a practice whereby a band gave a promoter a deposit (normally in the region of £150-200) and, in return, were given a stock of tickets to sell to make back that deposit.

On paper, it sounds like a fair deal, however, most bands who are used in this model are young, teenage start-ups, bands who are trying to develop a fanbase and are easily wooed by the promise of playing high profile venues like King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut. They paid their deposit and desperately tried to sell as many of the tickets in the thick book they have been given. The problem was, without a reputation, without a solid and dedicated pre-existing fanbase and a gig date sitting on a school night, it was impossible to make back that deposit. This left countless bands out of pocket.

After the Musician’s Union heard myriad concerns about the practice of Pay to Play, they created the Fair Play Guide, a framework that eliminated the practice of Pay to Play in the unsigned market. However, promoters are smart business people. It wasn’t long before they concocted a new scheme that became the standard model; Ticket Split deals. These deals offered a percentage of ticket sales both from the door takings and pre-show bookings.

However, this has been described by some as Pay to Play under a different guise. Bands with established names receive a far higher percentage of the door than unknown bands and it can be extremely difficult to determine whether a given show will be worth the effort.

Thankfully, not all promoters believe that this practice is ethical and in Glasgow, one of the most vibrant musical cities in the world, a promotions company looks to change the way gigs are run.

38

The New Hellfire Club is a promotions company with a difference. They are decidedly socialist in their approach and take ethics very seriously. However, it would be fair to say that their arrival in Glasgow has not exactly been welcomed by the incumbent stewards of the scene. Stabbed effigies, zealous security and so-

that. It is however strange that thus critique is aired while Live Nation get a free pass by those who often shout loudest. After all they own the ABC and Academy, DF and Ticketmaster, Getmein and Seatwave. They also book the independent venues and are very often given preferential treatment when doing so. Now if anyone wants to talk about a monopoly then there they are.

Yet, this obviously socialist bent has not stopped accusations of capitalist behaviour from being slung at the NHC. Bands have openly accused them of seeking to monopolise the Glasgow market and oust the established promotions companies, to which Main said: “We see them as brothers in arms rather than competition. If we were looking to monopolize anything then we wouldn’t be doing that.” Pondering on the evident hypocrisy Mainy, with all his dry humour and sharp observational eye said: “It’s strange that this critique is aired [at the NHC] while Live Nation get a free pass by those who often shout loudest. After all, they own the ABC and Academy, DF and Ticketmaster, Getmein and Seatwave.

They also book the independent venues and are very often given preferential treatment when doing so. Now if anyone wants to talk about a monopoly then there they are.”

DF Concerts and Live Nation were approached for comment, but had not responded by the time of publication.

cial media slander have all been used as weapons against this relative newcomer. To find out why this reception has been so icy, we decided to talk with the NHC and hear them out.

larger events with no reason given and on a few occasions people wearing NHC t-shirts have been refused entry to places. That was, in my opinion, a direct result our drawing attention to some of their practices. I suppose the main bone Booker, Alexander Main said: “I have to say of contention is that we promote a more ethical that it is multiple strands of issues dependent template. One where no one gets rich, but everyon who has been overtly or covertly criticizing. one gets a slice of the pie. That seems basic, and As an example of the covert side we often it is, but for those who make a good living from hear about promoters, who we would describe the imbalance in the entertainment industry it is as unethical, telling artists that we are charla- something they vehemently oppose.” tans looking to fleece them.” While this might appear to be whispers and hearsay, their beliefs It’s obvious that what the NHC do is completely are not without foundation, in fact, Main be- antithetical to the accepted wisdom of promolieves that since part of the NHC model means tion: “To prove the point we share loads of educating bands and shining a light on the events organized by other promoters featuring less-than-ethical practices of some promoters, registered acts. We see them as brothers in arms they have doubtlessly drawn their ire. “Some of rather than competition. If we were looking to the vocal criticism is rooted in ignorance. Some monopolize anything then we wouldn’t be doing have no idea of what it is we do, but don’t appear to have a problem in filling the void and then sharing their baseless views with others.

This isn’t uncommon really. It’s applicable to much in life. Then there are a minority who do it to secure some attention. For instance, wearing NHC CON t-shirts while performing, stabbing a puppet of myself as part of another performance. This has literally nothing to do with us, but rather the individuals involved who consider outrage as a publicity tool. I personally wonder why they don’t go for a larger company that the public are aware of.

They really aren’t going to grab a headline targeting us. And apart from these examples we have had members of the team asked to leave

HUSH, HUSH BABY

By Theodor Antoniou

“HUSH”, also known as Harry Mawby, lives in Ayr and studies Commercial Music at the University of West of Scotland. A few months ago, he started making his passion reality, when he started being “HUSH”, a rave DJ with a mysterious edge. When asked why he chose that specific nickname, he said: “ I was sitting playing Batman Arkham Knight and I saw there is a villain in Batman called Hush… when I came up with “HUSH” and talked about it with my friends, they all said that it fits perfectly and that it was the one.”

Having “Nirvana” and Jimi Hendrix as idols and Aphex Twin as a first touch with electronic music, “HUSH” is trying to combine being a DJ, being a bassist in a band and studying in university and as he says: “ I think it just increases my interest for the both acts…it is all about time management”.

He might not be a household name yet, but he has already published some of his work on Soundcloud, earning the respect of people, who, in his own words, “have never even met” him before.

Even though he does not think that he will be a big name until a year or two after, he sets the bar really high for himself, with “Berghain” and “Sub Club” being his top two dream venues to perform in.

39

THE BANTER THIEFS

By Andrew Scott (@AndrewScott98)

Andy interviewed Derek Watson, who is the bassist in ‘The Banter Thief ’s’ and organiser of the festival ‘Motherwell Makes Music.’ They discussed the success of the festival and what it means for the future of music in the Lanarkshire town. Derek seemed to be pleased with the impact it had and the popularity that it with the punters.

He was also quietly confident that the festival will return next year and that it could be even bigger.

The Motherwell Makes Music creator and Banter Thiefs bassist, Derek Watson, tells us about the success of the festival and what it could mean for the future of music in the area.

Derek Watson is the man who came up with the idea of a local festival, and he himself plays in The Banter Thiefs who are a local band. In an interview, Derek said the inspiration behind the idea of a music festival came to him when he was rehearsing at a recording studio in Motherwell. He said: “We rehearse in a studio called One Eye Dog, and there’s so many good bands that go and rehearse there every week, and you hear them through the wall when you’re in one studio and they’re in the other.

You think who are they?”

“this will be a platform for bands to show their talent,” “It seems for me that there is so many bands out there in Motherwell and the surrounding areas, that are creating really good noise but were not all brought together so I suppose this will be a platform for bands to show their talent but also to try and create a wee scene in Motherwell.”

“Starka used to be somewhere that you looked forward to going to at weekends” Since the old Starka shut down in the town, there hasn’t been a staple music venue. The pubs play host to bands on Saturdays, but that is it. With the help of the festival, Derek wants to change this.

He said: “Starka used to be somewhere that you looked forward to going to at weekends especially if there were bands touring, or local bands playing. Since that disappeared you don’t have anything. I’ve been trying to fill that gap.”

Derek talks about wanting to create a music scene not just the town, but for the whole local

Derek Watson, Bassist, The Banter Thiefs area. He hopes that Motherwell Makes Music’s event will achieve this. He feels that the culture is there, and he believes it can be linked with football.

This proved successful as the popularity of the festival means that it is set to return next year. Because of this, Derek hopes to see more bands and similar events coming to the area.

The audience is certainly there.

“I think it’s a big culture thing, and I think you’ll find a lot of people who go along to the football on the Saturday probably listen to similar types of music. Or they’ll go to the football on a Saturday afternoon and a gig on the Saturday night or to a nightclub and listen to DJs.” “I suppose if you could have a platform there, and bands see it as a music venue they would create a wee scene, then maybe bands from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee, or wherever may actually want to come and play Motherwell and give something to the town.”

While organising the festival, Derek stressed that it was set up to be “as cheap and affordable as possible.”

41

TT

TUNE TRIPPIN’

If you have the time, we have the tunes.