"What is your favourite word...?"

Hello again, Shambles Miller here, your host for the week. Today I want to talk to you about a TV show I'm a big fan of called Inside the Actors Studio. If you've never seen it, it's a show where boot-polish haired, warmly staccato-voiced James Lipton asks successful actors a series of questions, sometimes with such a depth of knowledge that the guests are quite surprised. "How did you know I wished for a bike when I was five", or "who told you about that time I had a hamster up my bum", they'll say. Obviously I haven't done anything like that level of research for this (or anything, ever), but every episode ends with the same ten questions. It's based on the Proust Questionnaire and I decided to ask it to some musical friends. Let's get a little insight into the hearts and minds of Scotland's bands and artists.

Julia Doogan (Julia and the Doogans) 

What is your favourite word?

My favourite word is "hilarious".

What is your least favourite word?

My least favourite word is "nice". I also don't like the word pussy but that's too rude to put in isn't it?

(Nope! - SM)

What turns you on?

Disco music.

What turns you off?

Nu metal.

What sound or noise do you love?

I really love my mums laugh.

What sound or noise do you hate?

When people can whistle but it's completely out of tune. Drives me insane.

What is your favourite curse word?

Cunt. I rarely say it but find it hilarious (fave word) that people can be so offended by a word.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

An extra on Casualty.

"Yeah, I just...I just have no idea what I'm doing."

What profession would you not like to do?

An extra on Holby City.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"You had a good run. Well done hen."

Julia and her Doogans can be found here and here.

Kyle Wood (Lovers Turn to Monsters)

What is your favourite word?

Artefact. Maybe...

What is your least favourite word?

I hate crude Scottish colloquialisms. So much I won't even say them!

What turns you on?

Female rappers.

The stuff Kyle's dreams are made of.

What turns you off?

Vanity I guess. People who worry too much about what others think.

What sound or noise do you love?

Clichéd, but can't beat rain fae yer bed.

What sound or noise do you hate?

I work in a bakery and my oven makes this horrific alarm noise when it finishes.

What is your favourite curse word?

Can't beat the F-word or a slow dragged out basturt!

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I guess I'm far from being a 'professional' musician so that'd be nice. Something art related anyway.

What profession would you not like to do?

...

(Kyle couldn't think of a profession he really wouldn't like to do. Which is how he got his new post as my personal butler. I make him wear a wee hat. - SM)

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"No bad son".

Kyle has a gig this week! For more info go to his Facebook.

Squirrel (This Silent Forest)

What is your favourite word?

Ephemeral or haberdashery.

What is your least favourite word?

Process.

What turns you on?

Generally most attractive girls between the age of 18 and 30.

What turns you off?

Smells.

What sound or noise do you love?

The old noise of a modem.

What sound or noise do you hate?

The iPhone standard alarm.

What is your favourite curse word?

Cunt.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I've had many but I would like to work for a think tank coming up with ideas or creating scenarios to test national security.

"Right, what if we just put all the baddies over here next
to Steve's house? Steve's a dick anyway."

What profession would you not like to do?

Telecoms project management.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"Yeah".

This Silent Forest play King Tut's New Years Revolution in January. More info here!

James Mackenzie (Love Civilian)

What is your favourite word?

Plethora is my favourite word. Don't ask me why.

What is your least favourite word?

My least favourite word is when people say STATUS the American way, like lattice.

What turns you on?

Wet hair turns me on.

What turns you off?

Eggy farts and spots turn me off.

What sound or noise do you love?

I love the sound of windy nights as I lie in bed.

(Not THAT kind of wind, obviously. Parp. - SM)

What sound or noise do you hate?

I hate the sound of people blowing raspberries.

What is your favourite curse word?

Cunt.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I'd like to try out to be a footballer, or some kind of sportsman.

What profession would you not like to do?

I'd hate to be a doorman.

I don't know man, I can't think of many jobs where you
get to dress like some sort of extravagant circus pimp.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

I'd like God to say, "Whattup bro, I got your album playing in the waiting room. It's goooooooddd shiiit".

James is on that Internet, check him out!

Finn LeMarinel

What is your favorite word?

Dinosaur.

What is your least favorite word?

Shampoo.

What turns you on?

Dinosaurs.

It's not known if Finn is the author of this book.

What turns you off?

A lack of dinosaurs.

What sound or noise do you love?

A car indicator.

What sound or noise do you hate?

The iPhone alarm tone.

What is your favorite curse word?

Fuck.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

Astronaut.

What profession would you not like to do?

Police man.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

Hallo!

A man of few words but awesome music. Check him out right here.

Wullie "Mammoth" Swales (Wullie Mammoth, Where We Lay Our Heads, Algernon Doll)

What is your favorite word? 

The first word that came to my head was pernickety.

What is your least favorite word?

 I'm not sure but I'm not a huge fan of people who misuse the words “epic” and “random”...

(I see what you did there, and I approve. - SM)

What turns you on? 

Not being afraid to be who you are. Not sure if that answer sounded a little bit too Jonas Brothers.

What turns you off? 

Ego. Fake Tan.

Sorry Donald, he's just not that into you.

What sound or noise do you love? 

I love the sound clapping hands, genuine laughter, the sound of a beer bottle being opened and that sound the microwave makes when it's reheated some delicious chilli.

What sound or noise do you hate? 

The sound of metal being scraped, like a knife off a plate, or stick drags across cymbals maks me feel physically sick.

What is your favorite curse word?

I'm a man of simple tastes, gotta go with Fuck or Fuckwit.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I've thought about this before and it's tricky but maybe something like board game designer, script writer, primary school teacher or some kind of dancer....maybe Salsa or Swing.

What profession would you not like to do?

 I once spent three days working a festival where my role was making sure people didn't piss on a wall, so not that again.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

”I can't believe you managed to save that girl and her army of puppies from those evil ninjas while the entire building was burning down, defeated the evil lord Chtulhu with nothing but a spork and stopped the zombie apocalypse yet died falling out of the shower. You'll be in need of a pint”.

Wull's up to hunners of stuff. Like this and this and this.

Boab Canavan (Campfires in Winter)

What is your favorite word? 

Callipygous.

(Yeah, I had to look it up too, and I must say, I like it. - SM)

What is your least favorite word? 

Test. No idea why.

What turns you on? 

I wouldn't say it turns me on exactly but a heartbeat is an absolute must.

What turns you off? 

Bad teeth. Pretty standard answer that but it's true.

What about NO teeth?

What sound or noise do you love? 

Ice crackling in a drink.

What sound or noise do you hate? 

That wee squeaky noise you hear in your head when you chew on the sleeve of a woollen jumper.

(Aaaaaaggghhhhhhhhhhhhh. - SM)

What is your favorite curse word? 

Bastart. Always with a 't' at the end.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? 

Mixing engineer/producer.

What profession would you not like to do? 

Septic tank cleaner.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates? 

"Sorry pal, not tonight. Away back and have another couple of years. And do it right this time."

Campfires in Winter are also playing KTNYR! Get tickets here.

So what have we learned here today? Musicians like to swear, have a good taste in interesting words, like being in their beds when there's weather outside, hate iPhone alarms, have lofty ideas about God's personal opinions, and look damn good in black and white. But what would Proust say? I don't know, probably something like "you're using my questionnaire for what?"

I'll be back with another post tomorrow. In the meantime, you can catch up with me on Twitter or Facebook. For now, I leave you with Will Ferrell's take on Inside the Actors Studio and the great James Lipton.

Fun fact: James Lipton used to be a pimp.

Get Off My Land!

So yeah, we didn't really finish this blogging thing yet.  But I wanted to get a post up before we play this gig tonight at The 13th Note with Algernon Doll, Lovers Turn To Monsters and Now Wakes The Sea.  Ewan said there will be pie and punch.  I doubt this, but there will be his lovely new 12".

Last night I salsa danced with a guy to Lovers Turn To Monsters, not sure how to top that tonight.

Let's look at a few more answers to these questions, today everyone's favourite drummer.

Stuart Bradley (Drums)

1. Song that got you into music? - Rock n Roll - Led Zeppelin.

2. Song that made you want to write? - Not written much but recently the King Creosote & Jon Hopkins 'Diamond Mine' album.

3. Song that changed your musical direction? - Admiral Fallow - 'Subbuteo'.

4. First song you ever learned? - Foo Fighters - 'Monkey Wrench'.

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive? - I'm From Barcelona - 'Dr Landy'.

So... yeah one more post to go.  Hopefully see some of you tonight at the gig.  It's going to be awesome!

We're not quite done yet (extended TAKEOVER!)

Yeah so we were going to finish the week with a big post yesterday, then Wull went out and got really drunk and didn't edit the interviews, so we've still got like 3/4 left to post and other things to talk about.  I'm sure Neil won't mind... (Ed.  Nope he won't!)

So yeah few things to chat about today number one being Danny's band Lost Ghosts single is out today for free download, and it's pretty damn good you can hear it on their Soundcloud.  Try and not dance when the chorus comes in.

We've talked about Common Records a lot in the past week well today.  Algernon Doll's album 'Citalo-pop' is out, go buy it at  www.commonrecords.bandcamp.com and also Lovers Turn To Monsters has a new free single out today for his song 'Skelator' from the EP of the same name which you can download here.

Lovers Turn To Monsters

1. Song that got you into music? - The Strokes- 'Last Night'.  I was forced to listen to a lot of music in my youth.  My dad loved Springsteen, Dylan, The Beatles etc. but The Strokes were the first band I called my own (even though my Dad saw them live before me).  I already had long hair due to interest in hippy culture but at this point the idea of modern musicians having long hair blew my mind...

2. Song that made you want to write? - Nirvana- 'Serve the Servants'.  Like all youth Kurt was the first person to make me realise music could have some depth.  I tried to think of the first Nirvana moment that made me REALLY sit up and the opening lyric to this is probably it.


3. Song that changed your musical direction? - Sebadoh - 'Truly Great Thing'.  After maybe a year or two of making music as Lovers Turn To Monsters I was coming to a dead end.  Constantly trying to mask my music in effects, multi layered instruments and God knows what else.  Lou made me realise that all that matters in art is honesty and expression.  You may think that's just our excuses for being lazy and thrifty but whatevs.

4. First song you ever learned? - Ash - 'Kung Fu'.  I was a bass player first and even though I'd jammed on the classic Smoke On The Water's and Seven Nation Armies, 'Kung Fu' was the  first song I could play right through.  Followed swiftly by The Ramones 'Beat On The Brat'.

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive? - Jon Brion - 'Elephant Parade'.  26 seconds of pure joy.  Boom!

Ok we'll have more to follow tonight, or tomorrow...

I just flew in from New York, and boy are my arms tired.

Hello everyone, are you doing well?  I (Wull) for one am very tired after spending a few great days in Inverness for goNORTH.  This is day six of the WWLOH TAKEOVER, but most of it was written on day five but not completed due to watching Rocky and Rocky II.

What I love about goNORTH is that essentially it brings all the people from Glasgow who are really working hard in the industry together and then gets them drunk and let them see a bunch of emerging acts.  I headed up on Wednesday morning with Calum K West (Common Records), Barry Carty (Walker Smith Jnr), Kyle Wood (Lovers Turn To Monsters) and Ewan Grant (Algernon Doll) and we all arrived in Inverness pretty much just in time to miss all the conferences... Oh well!

After throwing our guitars in the hotel we hit the pub for a few hours and watched Countdown before taking in all the bands.  I think I saw 7/8 acts including good friend Shambles Miller, who went down great during his set.  Highlights for me were; Book Group, an Edinburgh alternative indie pop group with great pop hooks with just the right amount of dirtyness to it, ALARM BELLS who were ridiculously good, groovy math core-ish stuff featuring old members of Danananakroyd and were crazily tight with a real Mars Volta vibe about them and Black International who played just before Algernon Doll at Blackfriars on the Thursday night.  They are a great, no fucking around, noisy twopiece rock with some great vocal hooks and the best drum faces on the planet.  Fact.

Stuart is also a member of Algernon Doll and drove up from Gourock right after work all the way to Inverness, sat down for a bit, played the set, which I like to think was pretty darn good, and then made his way back to Glasgow right after the set which is like 350 mile round trip AND still made it to work in the morning.  The guy is a machine.

COMMON RECORDS (label/family)

Andrew from Common Records was nice enough to answer a few questions for us so you can find out a bit about the label.  Common recently released our single 'Keanu Leaves', which you can still get online and at shows, and is about to release 'Citalo-pop' by Algernon Doll and 'Skeletor' by Lovers Turn To Monsters.

1. How did the label start? - The label was founded when Calum 'Kanye' West and I, along with a bunch of Levites and Hebrews, were traveling through the Egyptian desert after having a bit of a rotten time of it back in Cairo.  During this movement of jah people, Calum disappeared behind a rocky outcrop and came back with a basket of unleavened bread and the words 'Common Records' carved into a stone tablet.

2. How do you select the bands on your label? - Well, along with 'Common Records' there were ten instructions on said tablet.  We've only managed to decipher a few of these because, to be honest, Calum's stone masonry leaves a lot to be desired.  But they do include demands such as 'Release Where We Lay Our Heads single 'Keanu Leaves' because it's bloody brilliant' and 'Hamish James Hawk is ace' etc.  So we base the artistic direction of the label on this largely unaccountable and not necessarily correct plaque.

3. How important is a feeling of community within an indie label? - The feeling of community is very important, that's why we're commited to building places of shared veneration and benediction to all things Common.

4. What are your expansion plans for the label? - We have quite ambitious plans for the label, hoping to spread it throughout South and Latin America and large swathes of Africa mainly through force and culture assimilation.

5. Do you think being musicians yourselves helps in understanding your role as a label? - Definitely.  We are followers of a humble carpenter musician and so think it is important that we too are humble among the legions of musicians except we'll have more robes and fancy hats and vulnerable children.

6. Which labels do you look up to? - Sony, Columbia, etc.  You know, the big earners.

7. In which ways is it better to release on an indie label than self release? - Being on a label can give you great guidance and hope, that's why people turn to them in their times of greatest need.  I'm afraid this new strain of militant self-releasism spearheaded by the nasty Richard DIYkins shows the worst aspects of modern life.

8. What's your favourite episode of Friends?  The one where Rachel and Ross finally get together.  Adorbs!

Common have a very special gig on the 13th of this month at The 13th Note for Algernon Doll's album launch featuring Lovers Turn To Monsters, Now Wakes The Sea and ourselves.  It should be a hell of a gig and I do hope you all come down and see us.

There should be another post online this evening.

Wull x

5 Songs

Good evening!  It is day four of the WWLOH TAKEOVER and as our Wull is off galavanting in Inverness at this years goNORTH! you have me (Alice) for now.  We are continuing our '5 Songs' feature tonight with our very own Ali!

Alison Cochrane (Violin)

1. Song that got you into music - There's not really any particular song.  I remember hearing Bruce Springsteen, The Eagles, Adam And The Ants and Joni Mitchell when I was younger.  I think the first album I bought as a kid was Good Charlotte's 'The Young And The Hopeless' as my mum was always into punky/rocky music so I ended up going down that route for a few years.

2. Song that made you want to write - 'Machines' by Biffy Clyro.  I was about 11/12 when I was in my neighbour's house, and they had posters from the Blackened Sky and The Vertigo Of Bliss albums up.  I was intrigued, and have spent the years since loving Biffy's albums.  When Puzzle came out I listened to it on repeat for weeks, and I adored 'Machines'.  It's such a beautiful song to end an album on, and it made me realise that strings could work with any kind of music, not just classical or folk.

3. Song that changed your musical direction - Again, not a single song, 'Diamond Mine' album by King Creosote and Jon Hopkins.  I started listening to more Fence Records stuff, and eventually Jon Hopkins' own work.  I never knew that style of music could have so many layers through it that are both subtle and complex.   It completely changed how I think about song structures and dynamics.

4. First song you learned - On violin, it was 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star'.  I was 8.  As an only child I ended up teaching myself new hobbies (for a lack of siblings to wind up) and I taught myself Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata on piano.  Took me months and I can't play it now to save myself!  

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive - 'Hakuna Matata' from the Lion King.  If you can listen to that and not smile, you have no soul. 

Coming up on the WWLOH takeover we have more interviews (that are not just with members of WWLOH!), a goNORTH diary from our Wull and before the week is out we should have some music for you!

It's late, again, I'm not that sorry

So yeah, day 2/3 on the blog with the WWLOH TAKEOVER.  Today has been a fun day.  Stuart and I (Wull) have been in rehearsals with our good friend Algernon Doll, who is one of my favourite songwriters and people.  He did all of our press shots which we'll posting on this page throughout the week and he is also a part of the Common Records family.

We'll be continuing our '5 Songs' feature today, as people seemed to like it, and it's kind of what we planned for anyway.  So let's start with the newest member of the WWLOH family, Alice, who joined the band last year and then I'll probably rattle on about Ewan a little bit more, while I try and pack for goNORTH tomorrow.  Anyone else coming?

Alice Sinclair (Vocals/Keys/Toy Things)

1. Song that got you into music? - 'The Bends' by Radiohead.  A friend gave me a tape of 'The Bends' at high school, I must have been about 15, I remember listening to it at for the first time and thinking, 'what the hell is THIS?! This is brilliant!'  Radiohead were the first band I was obsessive about, saving my pocket money to buy their music.

2. Song that made you want to write? - 'Company Calls' – Death Cab for Cutie.  I don't do much writing as I am not very good at it!  However, 'Company Calls' was the first song that made me want to be in a band.  It is a great, catchy, awkward pop song, there are great hooks, shouty parts and it made me want to make music that people could dance to.

3. Song that changed your musical direction? - 'Paint Nothing' – Idlewild.  This was the first Idlewild song I ever heard and they were the first band I ever saw live.  They opened up a whole set of new music for me and turned me on to bands like Fugazi, Black Flag, Pixies, Husker Du, Minutemen and Q and Not U.

4. First song you ever learned? - I was never interested in learning to play songs by bands I liked, this might explain why I was in my 20's before I joined a band.  The first song I learned to play properly and in full was when I joined Incrediboy & The Forget Me Nots, and it was 'The Bridge'.

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive? - 'Dancing in the Dark' – Bruce Springsteen.  This song never, ever fails to make me smile and want to dance and punch the air with joy and sing!  I love it!

So Algernon Doll is a great guy.  We first met in November when I booked him to play a show in November or something along those lines after hearing his debut album Camomile and loving it.  I was just amazed by his solo performance.  At the end of his set I said casually, "if you ever need a bass player..." and it turns out he did.  I got to hear his second album Citalo-Pop which I personally think is outstanding.  It's full of amazing 90's dynamics with the same heart felt and honest lyrics as his first album but with the boot in the baws that a full band brings together produced by Tom Mitchell.  The first ever full band performance of Algernon Doll will be at goNORTH at Blackfriars on Thursday 6th at 9pm with Black International on just before us, who I love.  After that we'll be playing in Dundee at Non Zero's on June 11th, Edinburgh at Pivo solo, with WWLOH solo support and then on the 13th at the 13th Note in Glasgow will be his official album launch party with a full band WWLOH support slot and our good friends Lovers Turn To Monsters and Now Wakes The Sea.  'Cause there ain't no party like a Common Records party!

Ewan Grant a.k.a. Algernon Doll

1. Song that got you into music? - Either 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' or going back further 'Oh Boy' by Buddy Holly

2.Song that made you want to write? - Probably something off of Bleach like 'Blew'.

3. Song that changed your musical direction? - 'This Time I Think I've Gone Too Far' - Allergo or 'Metempsicosi Del Fine Ultimo' - La Quiete.

4. First song you ever learned? - 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' or 'Hard Days Night'.

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive? - Haha!  Ummm, 'La Finé Non E La Finé - La Quiete. 

And so sees another day of blogging done.  We'll maybe talk about Kyle Wood tomorrow as I'll be watching Kyle get drunk at goNORTH tomorrow.  It will be fun.  I need sleep.  Night Everyone.

WWLOH x

Who's House?

Hello everyone, are you well?  Welcome to the Where We Lay Our Heads blog takeover for Scottish Fiction.  Neil has entrusted us with his site for the next week so we thought we'd start as we mean to go on, by posting our first blog very late at night, but you can enjoy this when you get up too.

For those who don't know us we're Alice, Ali, Danny, Stuart and Wull.  We're an awkward pop quintet who currently live in the metropolis that is Glasgow but we've also got our home town links to Gourock, Inverness and the heart breakingly beautiful Dumfries.  We've been around in a few different forms over the past few years but the line up solidified in March last year when we brought out our debut single 'Bury You'.  In fact our first appearance with the last addition to the band was on Scottish Fiction on Pulse 98.4 FM.

This week we'll no doubt be talking about our friends bands, bands who we should be friends with, the fabulous Common Records and whatever comes to us while we're doing our posts, we'll be doing little features called '5 Songs' for people to highlight influences and give a little background on music we like too.

We've all individually done our answers for '5 Songs' (or are working on them), so we'll start off with the longest serving members (the people who've actually answered so far).

Danny Young (Bass / Backing Vocals)

1. The song that got you into music? - 'Welcome to the Jungle' - Guns N Roses. My dad would play Appetite For Destruction really loud in the living room and I would come running in playing air guitar and singing along to my version of the lyrics. My dad never did tell me what the lyrics "feel my serpentine" meant.

2. Song that made you want to write? - 'I Believe In A Thing Called Love' - The Darkness. This song didn't so much make me want to write as it did make me want to be in a band. The first guitar I ever bought was a knock-off white Les Paul. School of Rock came out when I was beginning to really take an interest in music - my friends and I missed school (we were in second year) to see that film, it was the perfect film to see as we were each discovering classic rock, swapping mix cd's and pretending we were bandmates.

3. Song that changed your musical direction? - 'Take Me Out' - Franz Ferdinand. Third year I started taking more of an interest in indie music and it was this album which expanded my horizons. I also remember my friend Stephen introducing me to the Arctic Monkeys first demos when we were supposed to be practising guitar.

4.First song you ever learned? - 'Desire' - U2. First song I learned on guitar. Let's not talk about that. On bass the first song I learned was 'Dreaming Of You' by The Coral, and it's still pretty much the only non-band song I know the whole way through.

5.Song that makes you happy to be alive? - 'Flirted With You All My Life' (Vic Chesnutt cover) - There Will Be Fireworks. Beautiful cover of a beautiful song by a wonderful songwriter. I don't really know what else to say.

Wull Swales (Singer / Guitarist)

1. Song that got you into music? - Nirvana - 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' or Green Day - 'Basket Case'. I think it was through watching Kerrang and MTV2 that got me into the first set of bands I really listened to. I think guess Spice Girls or the Smash Hits compilations was the first tapes I ever got, but yeah let's stick with my first two answers!

2. Song that made you want to write? - Biffy Cylro - 'Justboy'. It took me a while to kind of realise there was a Scottish music scene or whatever when I started out, as I mainly listened to 90's American punk and grunge stuff. Biffy and a local band called Technicolour Roots showed me that bands next door could produce great material.

3. Song that changed your musical direction? - Malcolm Middleton - 'Loneliness Shines'. Malcolm Middleton kind of showed me how honesty is really important to music, that songs can be dark but also be uplifting. 'Into The Woods' is one of the albums I keep on going back to and also is the album I suggest to anyone going through a songwriting dry spell.

4. First song you ever learned? - Blink 182 - 'Dammit' that was the first thing I learned on bass, which I still consider to be my first instrument, I think the first thing I probably played on guitar was Blink again but the first song I remember learning was 'Ticket To Ride' by The Beatles (who Stuart hates by the way).

5. Song that makes you happy to be alive? - WAVVES - 'King Of The Beach' / Lit - 'My Own Worst Enemy'. I struggled to choose a song for this I love WAVVES because of their great energy but the music also sounds really pure, the King Of The Beach record does kind of have that Beach Boys surf vibe about it but also some kick ass punk rock. I also chose Lit because it straight up rocks, it reminds me of playing punk as a teenager wearing Sex Pistols t-shirts and jumping around like an idiot, suppose I still enjoy doing that.

Anyway I better get to bed, we'll be featuring some of our friends tomorrow so keep your eyes open for that.

WWLOH x

Scottish Fiction Podcast - 27 March 2012

There's only so many times I can start the intro to the podcast with 'more live music'.  But that's exactly what what we have in the latest Scottish Fiction show.  There's new music from Sparrow And The Workshop, Night Noise Team, Homework and Holy Esque.  There's chat about Saturday's Scottish Fiction Presents: Aye Tunes vs. Peenko, with music from Le Thug and Pinact.  And there's 'Tweet-a-track' and 'Re-Mixing It Up features too.

Aaaaaaaaand our live guest is the wonderful Panda Su, who treated us to some live music and chat about her upcoming tour.  It's positively, absolutely, definitely superb.  


Father Sculptor - Sault
Le Thug - Swam

Tweet-a-track - Primal Scream - Loaded - As chosen by @BryanMcManus

Homework - Cairo

Re-Mixing It Up - CHVRCHES - Recover (CURXES 1996 Remix)

Sufjan Stevens - I Walked - As chosen by Panda Su

Panda Su - Bee Song - Live in Pulse 98.4 FM Studio

Stealing Sheep - Shut Eye - As chosen by Panda Su

Where We Lay Our Heads - Keanu Leaves
Reverieme - Build A Home

Panda Su - Alphabet Song - Live in Pulse 98.4 FM Studio

Land Of Talk - Some Are Lakes - As chosen by Panda Su

Pinact - Flake
Holy Esque - St.
Night Noise Team - A Man Makes
Biffy Clyro - Black Chandelier
Edwyn Collins - A Girl Like You
Sparrow And The Workshop - Murderpolis
Le Thug - Swam


Subscribe/listen to the podcast via iTunes.

Scottish Fiction - 27th March 2013 by Scottish Fiction on Mixcloud

Scottish Fiction - A Year In The Life

" Basically this blog is aimed to run in tandem with my show on Pulse Community Radio 98.4 FM, and I'll aim to post reviews of singles/EP's/LP's/gigs/etc. as often as I can. This is an often thankless and time consuming task, so bear with me! "

That's how the Scottish Fiction blog began a year ago*.  Hardly inspiring, yet I like to think over the past twelve months I've managed at least somewhat to offer some interesting features, slightly coherent reviews, and new enjoyable music to those hardy souls who have kept reading these interweb pages.

*It's actually over a year now, nearer 13 months.  Sue me!

The very first band I ever posted about were now (very) defunct I See Shapes which gives me a lovely opportunity to post this video and also encourage you to click on the above link to download their final EP for free.

I'm not one for sentimental markings of passing of arbitrary time (despite hosting a birthday radio show and a gig to celebrate one year of blogging...) but I thought I'd use this opportunity to look back on some of the better things that I've managed to do whilst under this auspicious rank of 'blogger'.  Here's our Scottish Fiction 'top moments'.

- Branching out further from the blog in July 2011 we put out the first Scottish Fiction EP comprised of Michael Cassidy, Night Noise Team, Adam Holmes And The Embers and Campfires In Winter.  We started with an absolute belter of a line up and things have continued along the same vein.  You can get all our previous EP for FREE right here.  This coming July will mark 12 EP's released and we've got summat special in the pipeline for this.  All will be revealed in due time, but trust me, it's gonna be huge.

- One of the most enjoyable and also nerve racking things about doing the live Scottish Fiction show has been welcoming guests onto the show.  Luckily all these shows are archived* meaning you can listen to them all again!  Whilst all have been great fun my personal favourites have been RM Hubbert, Where We Lay Our Heads and Beerjacket.  Hopefully we'll have many more in the future!

*I'm currently in the process of moving all our archived shows from Soundcloud to Mixcloud, so some may not be available at the time of reading.  Bear with me as this is both monotonous and time-consuming.

- Following on from the above, we had the very talented Michael Cassidy, Shambles Miller and Julia Doogan all in the studio for our first birthday show way back in January this year.  It was an absolute pleasure and remains a highlight of doing the radio show.  If you missed it, then listen back here.

- I've mentioned the Scottish Fiction EP's already, but December 2011's EP holds a special place, as we organised seven artists contributing a track each and raised £109 for Shelter.  Incredible to be able to both spread new music and help a worthy cause.

- Perhaps more importantly than anything has been the sheer education I've had in the amount of outstanding music about at the moment.  I considered myself well versed (why start a blog otherwise), but through doing this I've been introduced to more brilliant music than I could have imagined.  You'll find reviews and mentioned through the blog history, but this 'Best Of 2011' post probably sums up things quite well.

- One particular feature I've enjoyed has been the rather self indulgent, if a tad infrequent, '31 Songs'.  It's nice to be able to simply ramble about why I love a song so much once in a while.  Have a wee read through if you haven't before.

- In terms of one of the most fun things I've done on the blog, the Scottish Fiction Words With Friends Cup has to be up there.  It makes a change writing the blog being able to do something a little bit different, and hopefully for people reading it wasn't simply just geeky self indulgent fun.  Re-live the drama and see our overall winner Boab Canavan of Campfires In Winter spell his way to glory.

- Officially we celebrated a year of the blog with our Scottish Fiction Presents Gig on Sunday 17th June.  With a bill including Saint Death, Queen Jane, The Spook School and Michael Cassidy (we quite like him you know) we had a great night in The Captain's.  So good, I might even be mad enough to do it again!  Check out some pictures here, and also a lovely review from Songs Heard On Fast Trains here.

- Finally probably the most exciting thing that's happened via this blog takes place tomorrow night.  Inexplicably I was asked to be a nominator for the SAY Awards, and have been lucky enough to be invited along to the award ceremony tomorrow night.  I'll be oozing with excitement.  I've also blogged a fair bit about the awards which you can read here.


So to the future, and hopefully another productive and fun filled year of blogging, presenting, reviewing and discovering new Scottish music.  If you could grant me one birthday wish, it would be more interaction with the people who read this blog on a monthly basis.  Leave a comment now and again, we'll be nice I promise!

Thanks to all who've read, downloaded, listened or came to our gig.  Much appreciated.

Neil.

I leave you with this, my favourite song of 2011 and still going strong.  xx

Scottish Fiction Podcast - 19th March 2012

On this week's show I was joined by very special guests Where We Lay Our Heads.  The guys chatted about their new single 'Bury You', their upcoming tour, their plans for 2012 and how they see the Scottish music community.  We also got them to pick some tunes, and play some live songs!

After we bidded adieu to our guests, we had music from the likes of Discopolis, Michael Cassidy, Queen Jane, Saint Death, The Spook School and more!  Listen again and see what you missed!

Discopolis - Zenithobia
Where We Lay Our Heads - Cochrane Hall [Live]
Cafe Disco - Terra Nova
Letters - The Halfway House
Where We Lay Our Heads - Top Three Finish [Live]

Embers - Tunnel Vision
Where We Lay Our Heads - Keanu Reeves [Live]
Where We Lay Our Heads - Bury You
Ajimal - Footnote To Love [Part One]
Miasma - The River
Queen Jane - Those Summers
Michael Cassidy - Everybody's Scared
Any Colour Black - You
The Spook School - That's When I Ran Away
Ambulances - Feeling Sick

Mixing It Up - Chase & Status - Fool Yourself - As chosen by Jamie Sparks

Behold, The Old Bear - Solsbury Hill
Vasquez - Pete's Eagle
Saint Death - Thompson's Daughter

Scottish Fiction - 19th March 2012 by Scottish Fiction on Mixcloud

Scottish Fiction September EP

September has came and gone, but leaving behind in it's Autumny wake another Scottish Fiction EP.

This month's EP is an absolute belter, which some of my favourite Scottish artists about at the moment. All of them have been kind enough to feature on the blog's Q&A 'We're Only Here For The Banter' over the past four week's. As well as sharing their words, they are also sharing their music, and you can download the full EP for FREE below. Also check out the links to each artists Q&A.

Shambles Miller
Collar Up
Reverieme
Where We Lay Our Heads

You can download the full EP for free here, and also stream below. Enjoy!



Don't forget to check out past month's EP's here!

We're Only Here For The Banter - Where We Lay Our Heads

Where We Lay Our Heads are a 6 piece band from Glasgow who make what their Facebook page describes as haunting folk rock. All labels aside it should simply be enough that they make good music, which fans of Beerjacket and Loch Awe would enjoy. Their songs are written with heart and delicacy, and they have been making quite a name for themselves gigging over the last 12 months. Lead singer Wull Swales was kind enough to put some words into coherent sentences, which neatly answers questions. Have a read...

Hello, how are you?

Great thanks, and yourself?

None too shabby thank you! Tell us a little bit about your music and influences.

Hmm I guess it's always tough describing your own stuff. @canigetap on Twitter called us “Classic soaring, Scottish folk pop” which could be right, let's go for that. I like to think the music as kinda dark uplifting pop, we've also been described as “haunting” but it depends how you look at the lyrics, the EP we're working on right now “Remember You Are Mortal” is an example of that, it's not necessarily a reminder of death, but of life I guess. Influence wise recently a lot of it is pretty close to home, I like finding little things you can connect to and the idea that amazing things can be made next door so people like Peter Howson & Iain Banks and music-wise we'd all agree on stuff like Malcolm Middleton, Withered Hand, Beerjacket, Frightened Rabbit, Broken Records, Mogwai and a lot of Fence stuff too, i.e.King Creosote. And Chemical Underground stuff, i.e. The Phantom Band, and Song By Toad as well, which looks like I'm basically covering the entire Scottish folk bases. Let's throw Dougie MacLean in there as well!

Scotland has a thriving music scene. How do you find being a part of that?

I love that we're considered a part of it! Glasgow and Scotland in general is a great place to be right now musically, not just the diversity but the amount of good quality bands that are coming through. I really like the community aspect of the Scottish scene as well.

Which Scottish artists would you recommend to the Scottish Fiction readers?

Is there a word limit on this? I believe you have Shambles and Reverieme covered but they'd probably be in our list. John Knox Sex Club, Over The Wall, Conquering Animal Sound, Shooting Stansfield, White Heath, Esperi, Letters, Loch Awe, Cancel The Astronauts, So Many Animal Calls, Blue Sky Archives, Trapped In Kansas, Cafe Disco, Kate Dunn & The Redundants The Last Battle, How To Swim... there are too many good bands kicking around.

What is your songwriting process like?

Songwriting-wise it's kinda split but generally it'll start with me at home and I'll figure out a little vocal hook, or I'll have some lyrics written on the back of my hand or in my phone or it'll be just a little riff on guitar and just let it build up to a point where I'm confident enough to record a demo or bring the song to band practice and we'll just build up the track in our practice room.

What could we expect to see/hear from your live shows?

You can expect 6+ people all playing classic soaring Scottish folk pop and awkward banter and a lot of fun.

What does the rest of 2011 hold for you?

We've got an awesome secret house show this week, then October 15th we head down to Manchester to play Carefully Planned festival with bands like Shoes and Socks Off, Juffage, Loose Talk Costs Lives, Just Handshakes (We're British) and fellow Glasweigans Silver Caves, then we support David Dondero at Nice 'N' Sleazy on the 21st with our buddies Lovers Turn To Monsters. And on November 7th we get to support The Shivers at Mono with again our friends Randolph's Leap. We'll also be starting work on the new EP too of course.

What's been your biggest achievement so far?

I dunno, it's hard to say. I think getting to support bands like I'm From Barcelona, The Black Atlantic, Withered Hand, Grandfather Birds and Jeniferever were great. Summer Nights festival was great too. As well as the support press-wise we've had some nice coverage from the podcasts and a few BBC plays north and south of the border. We only played our first full band show in February and we keep on getting better and better offers and opportunities, can't wait to see what our answer would be to this question in 6 months time.

Thanks for speaking to us!

You can check out more from Where We Lay Our Heads on their Facebook page, follow them on Twitter, and get access to their music on Bandcamp. I leave you with this video of Wull performing the track 'Little Death'. Enjoy!