Scottish Fiction

Monday, 6 June 2011

What's On?

My car broke down this morning, which means I have the day off work. That's handy because otherwise I wouldn't have had time to do a 'What's On' post this week.

Festival season is well and truly upon us, with this weekend alone hosting Doune The Rabbit Hole and Rockness. Head over to both those websites for more information, and I'll try and do a preview on both sometime mid-week.

Also happening this week is Go North in Inverness, which sees performances from a whole host of Scottish talent, including Bwani Junction, PAWS, Mitchell Museum and more. As this event is hosted in Inverness, I'm not going to list everything that's happening, so if you are going or are interested, please see the Go North website (above) for more details.

And through in old Reekie, the Leith Festival starts on Friday, running until 19th June. Again, as this is outwith Glasgow and West of Scotland, please direct yourself directly to the Leith Festival website for more information.

The West End Festival continues this week as well, with some tasty gigs spread across the West End of Glasgow as well.

So without further ado, here's What's On this week:

Monday 6th June

The Captain's Rest - Straddling genres like they were thorough bred horses, Matthew Dear is the brains behind False and Jabberjaw. Tickets are £9, doors are at 7pm

Mono - Tight for cash? Never fear, head to Mono for Sad City, which is absolutely blinking free! Doors at 8pm

Pivo Pivo - Having recently played Peenko's Mad Hatter's Tea Party, Daniel G. Harmann plays Pivo Pivo with Adam Stafford and Esperi. Entry is free, doors at 8pm.

Tuesday 7th June

The Arches - Words cannot describe how much I want to go to this gig. Battles are supported by Thank You. Also if you are free during the day, head down to Monorail, where the band will be signing copies of their new album Gloss Drop. Get me a copy if you're there. Tickets for the gig are £15.50, doors are at 8pm.

Buff Club - Hot of their set at yesterday's West End Festival Sunday, A Band Called Quinn play in Buff to launch their new single Wolf Cries Boy. Entry is free, doors at 8pm(?)

Brel - Head to Ashton Lane for some folky/poppy/rocky sounds from Stu Goodall Band. Entry is free, doors at 7:30pm.

The Ship - Barrhead's own The Love Spells play as part of the West End Festival alongside Kate Dunn And The Redundants, Shambles Miller, Sweethearts Of The Radio. Entry is free, doors at 9pm.

Wednesday 8th June

Bloc - Cities And Skylines play along with Wrote The Author, Colin Hunter and Orchestrarara in support of Mary's Meals. Entry is free, doors at 9pm

Flat 0/1 - Milk plays host to Edinburgh band Bwani Junction, and Other People. That's the band Other People, although I'm sure there will be other people there too. Tickets are £3/£4 and doors are at 9pm.

Nice 'N' Sleazy - London band Cats Cats Cats support Thomas Tantrum. Tickets £tbc, doors at 7pm.

O2 Academy - US rockers Korn come to Glasgow. If nu-metal is your vibe then head along. Support from Yashin and Stillwell. Tickets are £27, doors at 7pm.

Thursday 9th June

The Arches - Prepare for the electric sounds of Ladytron, who are supported by Scotland's own Let's Talk About Trees a side project of John Knox Sex Club and Washington Irving. Tickets are £17.50, doors are at 7:30pm.

SECC - Someone must have shouted "hair rock, assemble!" Ron Burgendy style for this one. Journey, Foreigner and Styx unite. Tickets are £40, doors are 7pm.

Friday 10th June

The Captain's Rest - Communion label presents To Kill A King supported by Glasgow's own Sunshine Social, Crow Road and Yonderboy . Tickets are £5 and doors are at 7pm.

The Arches - Mono are a shoegazing Japanese Band. You can watch them watch their shoes. Tickets £12.50 doors at 7:30pm.

SECC - Rocket man himself Elton John brings his show to the SECC. Tickets range from £32-65 (!) doors are at 8pm.

Saturday 11th June

The Captain's Rest - Former Nine Black Alps member Martin Cohen's new project Milk Maid is due an album out soon on the Fat Cat label. With swooning melodies and distorted guitars this is definitely one to try and catch. Support from Robin Adams and She's Hit. Tickets are £5, doors are at 7pm.

The Arches - The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart are supported by Glasgow's Wake The President. Tickets are £12.50, doors at 7pm.

Sunday 12th June

Box - Catch Culann, Plastic Animals who I've played on the show before, Quinny and Logan La La Land. Entry is free, and doors are at 8pm.

Nice 'N' Sleazy - If You Lived Here You'd Be Home By Now are playing Nice 'N' Sleazy, however I'm not sure I'd want to live there. Black Jash are also playing and giving away lots of tapes apparently. Tickets are £tbc and doors are at 1:30pm.

Sunday, 5 June 2011

They're Taking The Hobbits To Isengard

The fact that the highlight of my Sunday spent in Kelvingrove Park for the West End Festival was seeing Billy Boyd, a.k.a. Pippin, in no way reflects on the quality of the music on show. It's just I am a huge LOTR geek, and also needed a link to post the above video.

I could have down with some help getting through the parade, which snaked it's way down Kelvin Way dragons and all. Impressive though it was, the gathering crowds meant I missed the start of Woodenbox With A Fistful Of Fivers, who were playing on the Hear Glasgow Stage. That the stage was parked right in front of a skatepark, was certainly a new for me, and invoked memories of a Sum 41 video. It also meant the crowd who did want to see the acts on stage risked being slammed by 10 year old boys falling off their skateboards (yes, it was funny each time) or retreating back beyond the park.

The music from Woodenbox, was deserving of a better stage to hear it. Everyone Has A Price with it's sax intro, is typical of Woodenbox's jangly sound. Somewhat like The Coral, with a Scottish accent. Lead singer Ali Downer must not have felt the wind chill with those Gaz Comb-esqe mutton chops. Hang The Noose really got the party started, and even the skaters, who by Downer's own admission would have prefered Dr Dre must have felt their foot a-tappin'. Draw A Line continued the set, and they closed with a sax/trumpet led jam. The only complaint is that they couldn't have played for longer!

Taking advantage of the gaps between bands, I sauntered off to buy an ice-cream. Bad move, it was cold and I started shivering.

Luckily, the next band on stage, The Dirty Demographic, brought out such dance inspired music, that I soon warmed up. Ok, I didn't actually start dancing, but the thought was there. Despite the name, there was nothing dirty about The Dirty Demographic. Their music was pleasant, upbeat, '60's inspired pop. Two standout tracks for me where Porn and Lucky. Throughout the full set front two Angus and Stefanie had an infectious happy stage presence, this is one band who deserved the sun.

Sadly, the clouds persisted and the wind kept blowing. However, I stuck it out, for a band I have wanted to see for a while, Stirling's own Miniature Dinosaurs. In town for Electric Honey's showcase gig in Oran Mor last night, they played a blinder on the Hear Glasogw Stage. Indie/art rockers from the moment you clap eyes on them, they kicked off with Turn It On, a ska/reggae infused track. Again the location hampered the crowd, and they certainly were deserving of a bigger audience. Cold Shoulder had a Talking Head's feel to it, and set closer and highlight Fight Or Flight has tinges of The Futureheads. After the set, I picked up a copy of the song on their split 7" with Wake The President. And two free badges. Woooo!

West End Festival Sunday

Today is the West End Festival Sunday, a free event held in Kelvingrove Park. There is plenty to do and see, and the famous Mardi Gras parade snakes it's way through the park. There's plenty of live music as well, with bands spread across 6 stages in the park and beyond. Here's a rundown of what you can see:

The Main Stage

12.30pm Sunshine Social

1.30pm Man at the Window

2.30pm Brooksy and the Sound Collectors

3.30pm Captain Slackship's Mezzanine Allstars

4.30pm Domino Gumbo

5.30pm Das Contras

6.30pm Esperanza

The Vintage Guru Stage

12pm Punto the Feef

12.35pm Little Buddha

1.10pm The Coy Dogs

1.45pm Toni Etherson

2.20pm Baudelaire

2.55pm Underclass

3.30pm Selective Service

4.05pm UKreign

5.00pm Strawberry Ocean Sea

5.35pm Gav Livs

6.10pm The Imagineers

Lord Kelvin Acousitc Stage

1.15pm Cairn String Quartet

2.15pm Puff Uproar & The Shimmering Sound Affair

3.00pm Parade Passes

4.00pm Clanadonia

4.30pm Eletricat

5.00pm Puff Uproar & The Shimmering Sound Affair

5.30pm Juba de Leao and Samba Ya Bamba

Rio Cafe Stage

1pm - 6pm Mark Robb - DJ sets

Kelvingrove Art Gallery

1pm Clanadonia

4pm Glasgow Fiddle Workshop Ceilidh

5.30pm Kings of Macumba

Hear Glasgow Stage

1pm Samba Band

1.15pm Switchback Road

1.45 Pedantics

2.10pm Laura Divers

2.30pm Wake the President

3.00pm Ironic

3.45pm Woodenbox and Fistful of Fivers

4.30pm Ryan McDowall

4.45pm The Dirty Demographic

5.10pm Miniature Dinosaurs

5.35pm A Band Called Quinn

6.05pm Kitty the Lion

Check out the full listings at the West End Festival website.

Friday, 3 June 2011

West End Festival Preview

Today is the start of The West End Festival which runs until 26th June. You'll be able to see a full listings, not only of gigs but all events on the website, but here is a selection of my choices that you should try and get along to.

Saturday 4th June - Oran Mor - The Electric Honey label present a line up of White Heath, who are promoting their new album, Woodenbox With A Fistful Of Fivers, The French Wives and Minature Dinosaurs. With such a great line up, you won't (like me) want to miss this! Tickets are £6 and doors are at 6:30pm

Saturday 4th June - The Captain's Rest - The Lava Experiments are launching their new EP 'Love, Lust & Loss'. Tickets are £5 and doors are at 7pm.

Sunday 5th June - Oran Mor - The Fence Collective host this show, where the line up is not revealed until the night of the show. However, with a catalouge of great bands on the label you can be sure this will be worth the ticket price. This is definetly a pick for the festival! Tickets are £12 and doors are at 5pm.

Monday 6th, 13th, 20th June - Brel - Folk sessions and informal jamming sessions held each night by Sarah Haynes of Admiral Fallow and Laura Wilkie from Rachel Sermanni's band. These sessions should be great fun, so try and head along to one!

Monday 6th June - The Captain's Rest - Straddling genres like they were thorough bred horses, Matthew Dear is the brains behind False and Jabberjaw. Tickets are £9, doors are at 7pm

Tuesday 7th June - The Captain's Rest - Post punk veterns and one of John Peel's favourites The Wild Swans are supported by Stealing Sheep. Tickets are £12 and doors are at 7pm.

Thursday 9th June - Oran Mor - Ayr indie rockers indiecode head up the M77 to play Oran Mor. Tickets are £10 and doors are at 7pm.

Friday 10th June - The Captain's Rest - Communion label presents To Kill A King supported by Glasgow's own Sunshine Social. Tickets are £5 and doors are at 7pm.

Saturday 11th June - The Captain's Rest - Former Nine Black Alps member Martin Cohen's new project Milk Maid is due an album out soon on the Fat Cat label. With swooning melodies and distorted guitars this is definitely one to try and catch. Tickets are £5, doors are at 7pm.

Monday 13th June - The Rio Cafe - Having supported the likes of Crocodiles, Vivian Girls and Wavves, Schnapps play Glasgow. Entry is free, and doors are at 8:30pm.

Monday 13th June - The Captain's Rest - Glasgow PodcArt present Jacob's Stories, who will have a new album out this year, and support comes from post rockers Midas Fall

Wednesday 15th June - The Captain's Rest - tUnE-yArDs a.k.a. Merrill Garbus are supported by Thousands who are signed on the Bella Union label. Tickets are £7 and doors are at 7pm.

Wednesday 15th June - Oran Mor - After dabbling with Cat's Eyes Faris returns to Glasgow with The Horrors. Expect their third album this summer, this is undoubtably the showcase gig of the festival. Tickets are £10 and doors are 7pm.

Thursday 16th June - The Wise Monkey - Up and coming Glasgow band The Fiction showcase their brand of alt rock. Entry is free and doors at 9pm.

Friday 17th June - The Captain's Rest - Glasgow's own Olympic Swimmers have supported Admiral Fallow in the past. They are joined by Rick Redbeard and Tesla Birds. One to see fo' so'! Tickets are £4 and doors are at 7pm.

Sunday 19th June - Oran Mor - More famously known as Mull Historical Society, Colin MacIntyre has sinced released albums under his own name. A forthcoming album as well as plenty of hits will ensure perfect pop at this gig. Tickets are £13 and doors are at 7pm.

Tuesday 21st June - The Captain's Rest - If You Lived Here You'd Be Home By Now are a Scottish all girl group creating exciting new sounds. Supported by Nico's Bike, Miss The Occupier and The Fnords. Tickets £tbc and doors are at 7pm.

Wednesday 22nd June - The Captain's Rest - With new album 'The Proximity Effect' out now, you can catch Laki Mera live as well. Tickets are £6 and doors are at 7pm.

Friday 24th June - Oran Mor - Communion presents a night in Glasgow after success in London, Dublin and Belfast. Expect to see acts on the Communion label. Tickets are £8 and doors will be at 7pm.

Friday 24th June - The Captain's Rest - Returning following their 2009 LP, Wake The President return. Support offered by Casual Sex and Post. Tickets are £5 and doors are at 7pm.

Saturday 25th June - The Captain's Rest - London band Tellison have supported the likes of Biffy, Johnny Foreigner and Noah & The Whale. On this gig they are joined by Parento and JJ Bull. Tickets are £5 and doors at 7pm.

Sunday 26th June - Brel - The Little Kicks bring some melodic indie pop to Ashton Lane. Tickets are £5 and doors are at 7:30pm.

Sunday 26th June - The Captain's Rest - Belfast's Girls Names make reverb jangly pop songs. Tickets are £5, doors at 7pm.

The West End Festival is an extremely multi cultural event, and chances are you will find something on somewhere which will catch your interest. A great deal of the events are free as well! At the very least you should head along on Sunday 5th to Kelvingrove Park for the opening parade!

Super Vinyl Adventure Club

Yeah, I started a club and gave it a childish name. So what if I'm the only member, despite what my wife says, it is big and it is clever! There almost was no super adventure this week. Severe lack of money has scuppered all gig going, and it meant I certainly had no cash to splurge on vinyl. What to do, what to do? Luckily I remembered I still had some HMV vouchers, so the adventure was back on! Here's how I got on:

Venue

So the afformented lack of money forced my hand this week. His Master Voice it was, the Argyle Street branch. Now you don't need me to tell you, that HMV is no longer the force it once was. Music, especially vinyl often takes a backseat amongst the more lucrative markets of video games, blu-ray and DVD's. To it's credit Argyle Street HMV does have a vinyl section, which is already more than most stores. Consisting of three racks, the selection isn't great. And the stock isn't readily replaced, meaning most of the LP's have been there since my last visit. The other drawback is HMV, despite what they may claim, do not want to deal in new music. They want safe, tried and tested music, which will sell. This means most of the vinyl is re-issues or mainstream artists. To my surprise however, I found (I use the word loosely, it was sitting right there) a solitary copy of FOUND's 3rd LP factorycraft. More on that in a minute. Despite the poor selection, and my general disdain for HMV, the staff member who served me was pleasant, and engaged in conversation. He certainly would have been at home in an independent record shop. Soundtracking my whole adventure was Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street, possibly from the Jackie Brown soundtrack, I don't know I didn't ask.

Purchases

As mentioned above, I bought FOUND - factorycraft LP for £20. Certainly more pricey than a CD, however this is standard. I do reserve a special spot for artists that price their vinyl release the same as the CD, but that is few and far between. Like The Seventeenth Century last week, FOUND get brucey bonus points for included free mp3 download codes. The artwork is also pretty nifty. Black and white prints of machine bits against a bold background of simply colour.

The music is very good. I wasn't overly familiar with FOUND, so their experimental style was near enough new to me. Anti Climb Paint - Lead single is a catchy number, and other stand out tracks for me include I'll Wake With A Seismic Head No More, Johnny I Can't Walk The Line and Machine Age Dancing. The album as a whole has a kind of interchangable feel. It's inventive and foot tappingly good at times. It ticks all the right boxes without being pretentious or trying too hard something many other indie rock bands can be accused of. The influences of post-modern rock are there to be seen, but there is also slices of pure pop (a la` The Cure) which break through at times. All in all, a rousingly good album. Have a listen to Anti Climb Paint here.

Wednesday, 1 June 2011

King Tuts Summer Nights 2011 Album

Fancy some free music? Of course you do you racy devils!

To celebrate the forthcoming Summer Nights which runs from 14th July to 28th July, King Tut's are offering a free download of an album featuring tracks from artists performing during Summer Nights.

Here's how the tracklisting looks:

1. Sonny Marvello - Pull Me Up
2. JumpersKnee - Letter To The Sun
3. Bwani Junction - Middle Meadow
4. Aerials Up - All Your Mothers Daughters
5. Fatherson - Gone Fission
6. Bronto Skylift - Wolf
7. Song Of Return - Trajectory
8. Dead Sea Souls - My Problem
9. Davey Horne - Last Train Home
10. Meursault - Crank Resolutions
11. The Seventeenth Century - Banks Of Home

You can download this lovely little collection of songs and also see who is playing Summer Nights here.