The Joy Formidable, Òran Mór, Glasgow

By Joe Watson

March 04, 2013

The Joy Formidable sound is one-size-fits-all. Whether they’re opening arena shows for heavyweights like Muse and The Foo Fighters or headlining their own pub crawl-type tour around UK taverns, the band adapt to their circumstances with ease. The Big Roar set the firm but humble foundations for the Welsh trio, but as they strived to be bigger, so did their sound, which cranked up with the release of Wolf’s Law. … Continue Reading

Everything Everything, Òran Mór, Glasgow

By Joe Watson

February 27, 2013

Having released what is arguably one of the best British albums of the year so far, and with their UK tour already well underway, the opportunity to see Everything Everything is supposedly guaranteed to be, well, everything it’s cracked up to be. But so often guilty of thinking into things too much, my dominant feeling upon entry is more one of intrigue than of anything else. … Continue Reading

Live Review: Emmy The Great & Tim Wheeler, Xmas Gig, Oran Mor, Glasgow, 17/12/2012

By Joe Watson

December 19, 2012

Dashing through the door, on the road to Oran Mor, for a split second I pondered with the idea of sporting a Santa hat. Had I done so I would have have felt more out of place than a Cliff Richard single in June. The venue and stage were thin with seasonal decoration and the spirit of Christmas was left purely down to the music. … Continue Reading

Alabama Shakes, Barrowlands, Glasgow

By Kenny McMurtrie

November 13, 2012

Knowing a band in name only before seeing them live is not a situation I often find myself in but that was the case tonight. A steady rise in popularity over the last twelve months and at least one Jools Holland show appearance in that time summed up all the information I had on them when the chance opportunity to see them arose.

… Continue Reading

Moon Duo, Broadcast, Glasgow

 By Kenny McMurtrie

November 12, 2012

I’ve no recollection of what occupied the Broadcast site previously but as newer live venues in Glasgow go its basement space is a good sized & welcome addition. For those of us getting on in years it bears a close resemblance to Edinburgh’s The Venue, replete with centrally placed girder for the more adventurous stage diver to monkey crawl along. For a psych/krautrock show there was also a distinct lack of long-haired blokes, albeit age & balding rather than fashion accounted for a fair proportion of that. Such are the thoughts that occupy you whilst waiting to be entertained.

… Continue Reading

Django Django, Glasgow, O2 ABC

By Kenny McMurtrie

October 25, 2012

Never has it been so safe to travel to Glasgow from Edinburgh for a gig, it would seem. Gone are the exciting days of potentially missing the last train home if you stayed on to demand an encore, as you’re lucky if gigs go on past ten o’clock now. All rather un-rock‘n’roll, but the heady mix of rampant capitalism and council curfews, at least in the larger venues, looks to be neutering the experience. Who cares though? Last night was too cold to be shuffling about the town if you were too late to get to Queen Street Station and those that have never had to rush off early won’t miss what they’ve not known. Still, it doesn’t half make gigs less of an event. … Continue Reading

In Pictures: We Are Augustines, Glasgow, O2 ABC

We Are Augustines – by Julia Stryj

By Julia Stryj

May 10, 2012

When I first heard about We Are Augustines and their tough past as individuals and the struggle towards the end of their previous band Pela, I was instantly amazed by the band’s determination and passion. Their surprisingly uplifting – considering it deals with a lot of the bumps that were on singer Billy McCarthy’s road – debut album Rise Ye Sunken Ships is constantly being listened to. Driving through the never ending rain to Glasgow to see them on their first proper headline tour since the album’s release in the UK, I find out that the support band is on at 19:45. That means a relaxed dinner is replaced by a quick take away as I don’t want to miss My Goodness.

… Continue Reading

Maps and Atlases, Glasgow, Nice N Sleazy

Maps and Atlases

By Judy Tate

April 19, 2012

Journeying from Chicago, where the band met several years ago, Maps & Atlases tonight find themselves in the packed basement of Glasgow’s Nice N Sleazy. Vocalist and lead guitarist Dave Davison, affixed to the mic, introduces the band, starting with a track from the new album Beware and Be Grateful. ‘Winter’ immediately asserts the band’s math rock melodies and gives the crowd a taste of the intricate instrumental styles ever present in the band’s work. This is the first of only three tracks included in the set from the band’s new album, released just a few days before the gig. The album’s decidedly polished sound and rhythmical layering implies an intense and perpetual writing process but drummer Chris Hainey defines it as a relaxed three session production. This polished sound transfers neatly to the stage, where later in the set the band air catchy track ‘Fever’, the second track on Beware and Be Grateful. It receives a good response from the crowd and the mix of electronic sounds and tinkly guitar work signifies the fresh elements of the new album. Reviews have commented on Beware and Be Grateful’s deviating sound, but Hainey insists the band are used to this reaction when they first release a record and that they don’t intend on making the same record twice. … Continue Reading

Yusuf Azak – Turn On The Long Wire

Much has been made elsewhere of Yusuf Azak‘s slightly wheezing vocal delivery, but anyone familiar with the work of Nick Drake is well catered for here and the singing sounds more “normal” than a lot of the autotuned trash that’s on the market today. Song number two on his new record Turn on the Long Wire, ‘Time To Kill’, actually brings to mind Ian Brown (albeit if he suddenly went all folky). … Continue Reading

Teenage Fanclub – Shadows

Teenage Fanclub - Shadows

Right from the opening chord of the lush ‘Sometimes I Don’t Need To Believe In Anything’, Shadows is unmistakeably a new Fannies album. Five years after their previous self-release (Man-Made), Teenage Fanclub’s essential elements are all still in place and performing to good effect – they can still jangle and harmonise along with the best of them, and indeed lead the field when necessary. While that 2005 album was probably the group’s most understated of their now 20 year career, this new release finds them tapping a more youthful and upbeat vein last seen on Howdy! From 2000. … Continue Reading