After 8 years of madness, Glasgow's longest running 'indie, punk, soul & electropop' night, Pinup Nights have decided call it a day, but the gang have decided to go out in style. For their last ever night, "Game Over", they've got one of the most stellar line ups that the Flying Duck will ever have witness which will include live performances by Sonny Marvello, Miaoux Miaoux, Malcolm Middleton (acoustic); Emma Pollock (acoustic) and The Twilight Sad (acoustic), plus as if that wasn't enough there will of course there will be the classic Pin Ups disco action through until the wee hours of the morning. Tickets for the gig are only £6 and are available here.
Tomorrow night at Oran Mor in Glasgow sees the launch of this Billy Kelly Award Songwriting Award. The songwriting competition was set up in memory of promoter and prominent figure in the Scottish live music community, Billy Kelly. Having started back in 2008 the event aims to provide the opportunity for songwriters of all ages and styles to perform in front of a panel of judges from different aspects of the music industry, and win a £5000 prize. Tomorrow nights fee event which is hosted by Tommy Reilly, kicks off at 8pm, unsigned songwriters, regardless of whether they are solo performers or in bands, are invited to take part. So if you want to find out some more information and get hold of an application form to take part, then get yourself along. Further information on the night can be found over on The Skinny's website.
If you were planning on heading along to Fence's Eye O' the Dug Festival, but haven't already bought a ticket, then I am afraid to say that you're going to be a bit disappointed as they've now sold out online. If you live near St. Andrews then if you're quick you might be in luck as a very small batch will be available for sale in St Andrews tomorrow. Just to rub salt into the wounds they've just added The Shutes, Randolph's Leap, Monoganon, BARBAROSSA and Standard Fare to the bill - ooft!
In the run up to this years Doune The Rabbit Hole Festival, the organisers have decided to put on a series of gigs, starting off this Friday at Stereo where Honey & The Herbs and Helicon will be joined by the new favourite thing ever - Behold The Old Bear (I will continue to bang on about this band until I have converted every last one of you!). Tickets for the gig are £5 on the door and there will be a raffle for a chance to win a pair of festival tickets at the show. Everything else you need to know can be found here.
The whole bloggers doing gigs thing really seems to have been catching on, as now Neil who runs the Scottish Fiction blog has decided to get in on the action with his maiden gig. Taking place at the Captain's Rest on Sunday 17th June as part of this years West End Festival, he's roped in four of his favourite local artists, Michael Cassidy, The Spook School, Queen Jane and Saint Death. You can find out more about the gig over on Neil's blog.
And last but certainly not least, Bart from eagleowl is putting on a fundraiser show for Shelter Scotland at The Third Door in Edinburgh. The evening's entertainment comes from none other than My Tiny Robots, ballboy (solo) & The Occasional Flickers, it all kicks off at 8pm, with the promise of party games, a raffle, and Shelter Scotland house DJs all for the bargain price of £6. More information can be found here.
It's been a while since I last did a news round up, but as per usual I wait until my inbox is close to bursting until I finally get my finger out and cram everything into one 'handy' post. Seeing as every man and his dog seems to be out playing gigs at the moment, I just wanted to share with you some excititng things that are happening that you might want to check out...
First off next Monday sees the releases of the second album from RM Hubbert's new album Thirteen Lost & Found, which comes out on Chemikal Underground. Featuring collaborations with an array of talented folk including Emma Pollock, Aidan Moffat and Alex Kapranos, it's sure to be an early contender for the end of year album polls. To celebrate the albums release Hubby is heading off on tour, kicking the whole thing off with a show at Stereo in Glasgow next Friday, which is very very close to selling out. So if you fancy heading along you'd be advised to get your tickets asap.
27th Jan - Stereo, Glasgow
1st Feb - Bishop's Castle Town Hall, Bishop's Castle
2nd Feb - Cube, Bristol
3rd Feb - King's Place, London
7th Feb - Butterfly Cabinet, Newcastle
It's not much of a secret that I am a big fan of Adam Stafford's last album, so it should come as no surprise that I am looking forward to catching him when he heads off on tour next month with Radio Trees (aka MJ of Zoey Van Goey/Aidan Moffat's Best Ofs fame). The short tour at the end of February/beginning of March sees the pair taking in an array of Scottish dates and a wee venture just south of the border down into Newcastle. Here are the dates in full:
Feb/March Tour 2012: 25th Feb: Stafford’s 30th Birthday Bash w/Radio Trees & O’ Messy Life (Newcastle) 13th Note Cafe (downstairs), Glasgow 1st March: w/Radio Trees, The Tunnels, Aberdeen 2nd March: w/Radio Trees, new Portsound @Manna Cafe, Dundee (Newport-on-Tay) 3rd March: w/Radio Trees, Head of Steam, Newcastle 4th March: w/Radio Trees, The Third Door, Edinburgh
If you missed out on tickets for Admiral Fallow's gig at the ABC next Friday, then you could always console yourself by picking up some tickets for Louis Abbot's solo shows at Brel on the 25th of January and the 1st of February. The gigs which will see Louis playing with some 'very, very special guests' are only £5 and you can purchase them here.
My friend up in Inverness, Jamie at Netsounds Unsigned has announced his first showcase gig of the year at Mad Hatters next Friday (27th). To kick things off he's lined up none other than Dead Boy Robotics, Team Kapowski and Lady North and is if that wasn't enough the whole thing is free. So if you're up in that neck of the woods get yourself along at 9pm to check out some of Scotland's finest up and coming bands.
In case you haven't already heard, the club/gig promoters Pin Up Nights are going to be calling time it day at the end of March. Having made the The Flying Duck their home for just over three years now, the gang only have 3 more nights left and they have promised to send things off on a high. Their last night night takes place this coming Friday and this time round they've gone for a space/sci-fi-themed event billed as an Intergalactic night. Featuring live music from Den Haan, Nevada Base and Fiction Faction, further information on the night can be found here.
As if a bill featuring Sebastian Dangerfield, Edinburgh School for the Deaf and PAWS wasn't enough, my pal friend Stu over at the Tidal Wave of Indifference has just announced that he's added Broken Records frontman Jamie Sutherland to the line-up for his second gig. Taking place on Saturday the 25th of February at the Wee Red Bar, tickets for the gig are available for £6 (plus booking fee) at Avalanche Records and through Brown Paper Tickets.
I am going to start this post by apologising to anyone who might be waiting for a reply email from me. Normally I am pretty on top of my inbox, but this weekend I have succumbed to the dreaded man flu, so much of today has been spent lying on the couch feeling sorry for myself. It's pretty safe t say that today hasn't been the best of days. Thanks to me overdosing on Lemsip I have 'manned up' and will stop moaning so I can get this post done. I did say recently that there would be some random gig/new posts cropping up every so often, so being true to my word here's some news and a few good gigs coming your way over the next month or so...
First up we have a wee shindig being put on at the Captains Rest at the end of the month featuring the pop-tastic Endor, Olive Grove's very own Randolph's Leap & Esperi, plus Amber Wilson, who I have heard a lot of good things about but have yet to see her live. The gig is being put on as a VS night by Pelmet Nights and Gathering Whispers, if past performances are anything to go by this should be a great evening.
If you're in a band and you're thinking about applying to play at this years goNorth Festival and you haven't already done so, then you best get your finger out as submissions close at the end of this week. I know I have raved about this event before, but it really was great fun for me last year, I learned a lot, drank far too much and I even got to meet Mimi from Shameless. By meet I of course mean 'saw', as she was signing autographs in Poundland, classy as fuck.
Promoters, No Dancing are continuing to step away from the norm and bring together an array of amazing bands that you wouldn't normally see on the same bill. Last time round they had Bronto Skylift and Withered Hand. This time round they've brought together Peenko favourites The Scottish Enlightenment, Miaoux Miaoux and Male Pattern Band for a cracking evening of music. It takes place on Saturday 9th of April at The Admiral Bar and it's only £5, bargain.
It's been a while since I mentioned Pin Up Nights, so I thought it was about time that I gave the night a wee plug. This coming Friday they've lined up some stellar bands in Milk, Sonic Hearts Foundation and Galleries, plus there will be all the usual shenanigans that makes the night so much fun. Find out more over on their homepage, also if you've got a minute check out their fanzine which is always a pretty good read.
The fabulous Washington Irving make a welcome return next month with the release of their new single 'Abbey Gallop'. Out on the 25th of April, the band are heading off on a massive UK tour to support the release of the single, this includes a number of Scottish dates this April:
2nd Edinburgh - Sneaky Petes 5th Glasgow - Captains Rest 6th Dundee - Dexters 7th Aberdeen - Snafu 8th Stornoway - Jager Rooms 9th Inverness - Coel Mor 10th Aviemore - Old Bridge Inn 26th Glasgow - Love Music in store 28th Communion Glasgow Launch @ Stereo
You can stream a live version of the B-side to the single, French Leave below.
Continuing on from Fridays video post, the awesome Detour boys have continued to post up their video diaries, make sure you check out this wee video of Withered Hand, Kid Canaveral, Errors, Twin Atlantic, Admiral Fallow and The Twilight Sad. They also made this mind blowingly good video that I'd urge to check out...
Edinburgh outfit, Scrap Brain who caused a bit of a controversy a few months back when they aired their opinions on the 'anti-folk' scene in their home town. There's nothing like a good bit of contention to get yourself noticed, so with the grunge-punk trio set to release their debut single, ‘Nal’, at a launch gig on Friday 8th April it's going to be pretty interesting to see what kind of reception they get. The gig takes place at Maggies Chamber, with support from the much lauded Lady North, Jump: Press A and Art of Privilege. The single was recorded at Verden Studios and is being promoted by New Found Sound as part of the band’s development deal awarded to them for being judged the best band of the 2010 ‘Friday Night Live at Frankenstein’s’ competition. Tickets for the gig are available in advance for £3 from TicketWeb or from Scrap Brain, and will be available on the door for £5. Doors for the gig open at 7:30pm. I wonder how many folkies will make it along...
Lastly, a small group of undergraduate students from Heriot-Watt’s Scottish Borders Campus are organising a music event in Edinburgh to raise money for MS Society Scotland.
The band night entitled ‘Gig for MS’ will showcase three up-and-coming Scottish bands from both the Edinburgh and Glasgow music scene: ‘My Tiny Robots’, ‘Ghost Ride the Whip’ and ‘Chris Hunter’, with a DJ playing until late. The night will be held at Edinburgh’s ‘Electric Circus’ located at 36 Market Street - on Wednesday the 6th of April 2011. Doors will open at 7.30pm with tickets being sold on the door at £5 each. All proceeds will be donated to MS Society Scotland. Further details can be found here.
Monday - Kicking off the week the Scottish Enlightenment talked us through their amazing new album 'St. Thomas. The Plimptons also took on Fresh Meat action, in addition there was also The Sexual Objects session for Marc Riley. Tuesday - another cracking session from The Phantom Band Wednesday - Let's Talk About Trees were my 42nd Scots Way-Hay club entrants Thursday - there was even more Let's Talk About Trees this time it was a session for SubCity. On top of that I had a wee interview with my new partner in crime Halina Rifai as I got her to tell you a bit about our new venture, Olive Grove. Friday - there were some cracking freebies, including stuff from French Wives, FOUND and Badly Drawn Boy. Saturday - Meursault take on Daniel Johnston's 'Hey Joe' in We've Got It Covered.
News, gigs and any other gubbins......
The National are in Glasgow on Friday to play a show at the Academy, personally I can't wait for this one. Sadly if you haven't gotten yourself a ticket you're a bit stuff as the gig is sold out, you can however catch the band spinning some tunes at Pin Up Nights 7th birthday at the Flying Duck. Also playing live on the night are local starlets Skinny Villains, For Abel and Strawberry Ocean Sea.
Before I wrap things up for the week I just want to let you know about a wee project from a gentleman by the name of Jer Reid, who also plays in Issho Taiko Drummers. He is embarking on a project called the 'Winter Cycle', in which he plans to do a 31 day series of improvised duos with a different collaborator each day. He has arranged an array of artists to get on board with the project including Luke Sutherland, Rosalind Masson, RM Hubbert, Xana Marwick, Joseph L. Quimby Jr, Cheer, Christine DeVaney, Iain Campbell and Wounded Knee. The series of gigs kick off at midday from Sunday 5th December 2010 through until Tuesday January 4th 2011, with the majority of the gigs taking place at Stereo in Glasgow. Performances on December 25th, January 1st and January 2nd will be at the Flying Duck (man that is some dedication). Further details on the gigs can be found on his website.
Monday - Monday was a really special day for me, as we had the first ever Peenko Sessions featuring Kid Canaveral. There were also details on how you could come along to the next session. Plus the soon to be defunct Futuristic Retro Champions took on some Fresh Meat action
Tuesday - I had a live recording of Frightened Rabbit's set at this years Lollapalooza festival Wednesday - the poptastic Endor were the newest additions to the Scots Way-Hay club Thursday - The Zephyrs were in session for Marc Riley, plus there was a cracking wee 'tour diary' by David from Kid Canaveral, from what I've heard he had to edit quite a lot of things out... ;) Friday - Freebie time, there were some right corkers this week, including tracks from Ghost Pants, Bear Bones and the Go Team Saturday - There was a session from the Twilight Sad featuring an acoustic version of the lead track from their new EP, The Wrong Car. In We've Got It Covered, Evil Hand took on a Beach Boys classic.
News, gigs and any other gubbins.....
It's fast approaching the end of the month, which must mean that it's Pin U Nights time at the Flying Duck. This month those kooky kids are getting into the spirit of things and having their own wee Halloween part. Featuring live sets from local indie pop starlets, Pop Up, Endor and the Social Services, it's only £4 to get in if you turn up in costume. Tickets are available in advance from Tickets Scotland.
Next Friday, my fellow blogger, Favourite Son is putting on his first ever gig at the Classic Grand as part of the series of Oxjam gigs. He may well be new to this game, but he's still managed to rustle up a cracking wee line up featuring, The Winter Tradition, Nevada Base and Kochka. It's only £4 advance, or £5 on the door and it's all in the aid of charity. Get on it kids, this is going to be a belter of a gig.
Meanwhile over in Edinburgh, Homework are putting on a gig billed as 'The Night Before Halloween' at the Pilrig Church on Leith Walk, Edinburgh. Support on the evening comes from We See Lights. Tickets £7 / £5 in fancy dress, plus it's BYOB (nice touch). Get tickets here.
Monday - Dundee's finest, The A Forest kicked off the week with some Fresh Meat action Tuesday - Tired Pony's session for NPR, plus more excitingly there was an interview with my fellow blogger Ed from 17 Seconds was the fourth DIY label that got a little feature, if you haven't checked out his label then make sure you do as he's put some cracking records in the past few years. Including the new album this weeks featured Scots Way-Hay band Wednesday - The Last Battle have a cracking wee album due out next month, make sure you hunt it down when it does come out, until then you'll have to make do with this interview they did for me as part of my Scots Way-Hay posts. In addition to this I had sessions from Edwyn Collins, The Vaselines, plus Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan Thursday - the fifth in my series of posts on Scottish DIY labels, with new up and coming label RE:PEATER RECORDS Friday - Another week, another shed load of freebies, Summer Camp, Randolph's Leap and Esperi being my particular stand outs Saturday - Yahweh were out Saturday starlets with their take on the Animal Collectives 'My Girls' in We've Got It Covered.
News, gigs and any other gubbins......
On Wednesday (22nd) night at Stereo, a whole host of local talent are coming together to celebrate songs spanning Stevens' career under the title of 'Widows in Paradise'. Featuring performances and collaborations from members of an array of talent including Open Swimmer, Washington Irving, Julia & The Doogans, The Last Battle, Randolph's Leap, Endor, Esperi, Quickbeam and more, this is a truly unique event that you don't want to miss. Tickets are on sale now, as well an evening full of cracking songs, you can also expect some delicious homebaking, mmmmmm cakes.....
It's almost that time of the month again for Pin Up Nights (did I just make Pin Up Nights sound like someone having their period?). This month they are having their very own 'Geek Night', they have lined up Angelos Epithemiou from Shooting Stars to DJ at it. Fuck knows what that'll be like, they do have some cracking live bands playing though, including previous Fresh Meat starlets B-Movie Junkies, the ferocious Paws and Heart Beats (who I know nothing about) to play live. Tickets are available to buy in advance through the Pin Up Nights website or through Ticket Scotland.
Tomorrow sees the release of the highly anticipated Cold Seeds album on CD through Song By Toad Records. In case you aren't already aware, the band could almost be described as something of a Scottish super group, featuring members of Meursault, Animal Magic Tricks and the legendary Kenny Anderson, aka King Creosote. This album is a one-off collaboration, which was recorded in Matthew 'Toads' living room, if you listen closely to the first song on the album you can even actually here his cat making a 'guest' appearance. The album was recorded over two weekends back at the end of 2009 and has been out on 12" vinyl for a little while now, and now it's finally making it's long awaited release on shiny CD's. You can order yourself a copy through Song By Toad Records.
Tomorrow also sees the release of Steven Milne's new single 'Best of Times' on Bedford Records, you can stream the lead track from it below. With his album "Chasing Phantoms" due out at the start of November, this track certainly bodes well for what we can expect to hear, he's certainly one to listen out for.
The Scottish Enlightenment launch their new EP, 'Little Sleep' this Friday (24th) at Sneaky Pete's in Edinburgh. The EP itself isn't out until next week, I've heard it and can confirm that it's one of the finest things they've done so far and that's saying a lot. Tickets for the gig are £5 or £4 advanced, support on the evening comes from Dan Lyth and Moon Junk, plus it'll give you the opportunity to get yer grubby little pits on their EP that bit earlier.
To finish this weeks round up I thought I'd post this wee video by up and coming Scottish band, Dirty Keys, it was produced in Glasgow by LDH productions, enjoy....
Monday - Penguins Kill Polar Bears sunk their teeth into some Fresh Meat Tuesday - Scottish American outfit, The Wynnton Marshals Radio 2 session got a well earned posting. Fans of the Teenage Fanclub would be recommended to check them out Wednesday - The Seventeenth Century stepped up to the plate and became the 25th entry into the Scots Way Hay club. Great band, great post, great tunes, if you missed it on Wednesday make sure you check them out. Thursday - The legendary John D from Pin Up Nights did some Community Service, plus I also posted live sets from this T Break Stage. Friday - Yet another week filled with some amazing Freebies, including tracks from Peenko favourite King Post Kitsch, a greta new tune from Edwyn Collins, up and coming Edinburgh outfit Trapped Mice and some solo tracks from Ryan Joseph Burns of the afore mentioned The Seventeenth Century. Saturday - Camera Obscura were our We've Got It Covererd stars with their take on the Abba classic Super Trooper
News, gigs and any other gubbins......
Right it's Sunday, Sunday's nights are usually pretty dull nights, the fear of work the next day tends to start to kick in late in the afternoon. So what better a way to cure those blues than by heading along to the Classic Grand tonight for Mammoeth’s debut album launch. Formerly known as Team Turnip , the band have organised cracking wee line up featuring Sunset Song (formerly Wake The President), recent 'Ayetunes vs Peenko' starlets Randolph’s Leap and the a talented young lady by the name of Georgia Seddon (the daughter of Incredible String Band legend Mike Heron- now that's some impressive heritage). Doors are at 7pm and tickets are only £6, possibly the cheapest Sunday night blues curer that you're ever going to find. You can find further details here.
Now for the bit where I go all corporate on you all. Some of you (i.e. Jim) might remember that I ran a post a while back about the end of the Mill, 'cleverly' entitled 'Run of the Mill'. I had picked the information up from a bands blog, but as they had their fingers rapped for it I had to pull the post. Turned out that it was actually true though, the Mill is no more, some might argue that it's not that great a loss, but I always thought it was a good idea that could have been tweaked. I guess once you give things away for free it kind of devalues to a certain extent, which usually meant that you ended up with a lot folk being there to be seen rather than to see the bands. I know I am getting older, but seriously why the fuck do people go to gigs just to talk shite to their mates. The older I get the more I can relate to Larry David. Anyway, there was a point to this, honest there was. Basically the Mill is no more, in it's place Miller have used their research to find a product more tailored towards what 'the kids' want. It's called Miller Filtered and t sounds like it good be a much better way to market beer and music together. What they have decided to do is go with the novel idea of bringing big name bands to Oran Mor (sorry Edinburgh, but there will no longer be any East coast Miller gigs), and to have them play their songs in a stripped back fashion. Kicking it all off are The Doves, a band that are billed as one of the biggest in Britain, or at least that's what the press had us believe. Weren't they supposed to do an Elbow last year, I don't think they ever quite made the major league breakthrough did they? Still though, they are a pretty big band, I think the fact that the gig sold out in less than 24 hours can vouch for that. In addition to the Doves they have two local bands playing, one of which is Pearl and the Puppets. An artist that I will that I have never really painted in a positive light, after seeing her play at the launch I can appreciate that she's talented. Not my cup of tea, but she should do well. As for the other band that are playing on the night, they were so bland that I can't fully remember their name. Right that's just about enough of my ramblings on Miller Filtered, basically it sounds like an interesting concept. The Doves gig is sold out so you'll have to wait until the next event before you can check it all out. Apparently they have someone pretty special lined up, but they won't be releasing any details until after the first gig takes place. So basically keep those eyes peeled, I am sure they have something exciting in store for us all.
In case you missed the plug for it during the week, then here's a wee reminder that this Friday is the second ever PinUp Nights Festival, featuring sets Mitchell Museum, Sonny Marvello, Futuristic Retro Champions and Campfires in Winter. Plus DJ sets from Scott from Sons & Daughters, Remember Remember, plus loads more. Check their website for further details.
Innovative Edinburgh base label, Gerry Loves Records, celebrate the release of their second split single. After the success of their first split release which featured Conquering Animal Sound and Debutant. Now they're back with another really interesting combination, Yahweh and Trapped in Kansas. The single is out next week (2nd of August) on limited edition 7", with the added bonus of a download of the two tracks, plus also an exclusive bonus track by each of the artists. Plus if you're quick off the mark then there is also going to be an extra special super limited, deluxe edition. You can pre-order yourself a copy by heading over to the Gerry Loves website.
To celebrate the release they're putting on couple of gigs in Edinburgh and Glasgow. The first one is this Thursday (29th) at the The Wee Red Bar, Edinburgh, with the bands relocating to Glasgow for on Friday the 30th July at Nice n Sleazys. Trapped in Kansas and Yahweh play live on both nights, plus support. You can stream both of the singles below.
Next weekend sees the launch of the inaugural Captains Rest Festival. It takes place over two nights, Saturday 31st July and Sunday 1st August, with the 'Rest is being taken over by a whole mixture of Scottish and international bands. Saturday's line-up looks something like this World Atlas (Brooklyn, Ny) Lenzie Moss (Glasgow) Male Pattern Band (Glasgow) Lady North (Edinburgh) Q Without U (Glasgow) Calacas (Glasgow) Mike Nisbett (Glasgow) While on the Sunday they have Young Empires (Toronto, Ca) She's Hit (Glasgow) Un Cadavre - (SEE THEY CAN STILL GET GIGS IN GLASGOW, FUNNY THAT IT'S WITH PCL) Xprolifex (Glasgow) Tangles (Glasgow) Curators (Glasgow) Little Kicks (Aberdeen/Edinburgh). Further details are available here.
Tickets for this years Retreat Festival go on sale tomorrow, billed as a strung out weekend of DIY pop music in Edinburgh. The event which is in it's third year, takes place over the weekend of the 28th and 29th August. Featuring 16 acts from Edinburgh and Glasgow, the event has a a cracking line up in store for you. SATURDAY AUGUST 28TH : eagleowl, Enfant Bastard, FOUND, Jesus H. Foxx, Skeleton Bob, Withered Hand and Wounded Knee SUNDAY AUGUST 29TH : Benni Hemm Hemm, Conquering Animal Sound, The Douglas Firs, The Leg, Meursault, Milk, Rob St John and The Wee Rogue Day tickets are £7 and Weekend Tickets are just £12 Click here for further details.
Lastly, next week sees the launch of another independant Scottish Festival, Doune The Rabbit Hole, which surprisingly enough takes places up in Doune (near Stirling). This one is for charity, it has a cracking array of Scottish talent, it looks something like this Meursault (Song, By Toad), The Junipers , Withered Hand (SL), Rozi Plain (Fence), Francois & The Atlas Mountains, Wounded Knee, Hidden Masters, Lipsync for A Lullaby, Les BOF!, Modus, Sara & The Snakes, and much more, as well as (DJs) Rudi Zygadlo (Planet Mu), Josh Jones (Death Disco - The Arches, Glasgow), Tall Paul Robinson (The Go-Go Club – Studio 24, Edinburgh), and GRNR. Now that's what I call a line up! Tickets are very reasonable £15-£47, you can buy them here.
I'm old, I don't go to nightclubs anymore. There I said it. Come eleven o'clock on a Friday I am usually in no state to be out on the tiles and the call of my bed or some form of really unhealthy deep fried food tells me it's time to call it a night. That being said, I did manage to stay out and make it to Pin Up Nights for the first time about three months ago. That might well have had something to do with the fact that they were daft enough to let me DJ at one of their nights. Having stumbled along after the first Peenko vs Ayetunes gig at the Captains Rest, I had possibly on of the best nights of my life. Not just because I got to inflict my tunes on others, but because I found myself in possibly the coolest indie disco I've ever been to. The vibe of the place struck me instantly, it was just nice and chilled, full of good folk and more importantly there were some top tunes being played (with the possible exception of my set). The question I found myself asking was "why wasn't there a club like this when I was a bit younger?". There probably was one, but it must have completely passed me by. I've never been any good with knowing where the good places to go where. Give me the safety of a sweaty gig any day of the week. That I guess is where Pin Up Nights comes into it's own, as they also put on bands as well. They continue to pick up on quite an array of amazing up and coming acts, both locally and from these shores and sometimes even further afield. They recently were the focus of a rather crude smear campaign from a not so nice band who's name isn't even worth mentioning. In response to this the online community got together and showed their support for what is an excellent night that does a lot of great things to support local bands. For that reason I thought it would be a good idea to get John D the founder of Pin Up Nights to do a bit of Community Service...
Would you care to introduce yourself and the rest of the Pin Up Nights team?
There’s myself, John D, who started the night way back in 2003, and I suppose I have formed a crack team of creative “Pin Ups Chaps” - Paul Smith, Iain OC. James “Butcher” Cassidy, Young Niall and Baillie. We all have varying levels of involvement depending on how busy we are with what I call “Terrifying Real Life” during any given month. For example, I did a fair amount of background work to set up the last two Pin Ups, but I had to miss both of the actual nights.
What was it that inspired you to start running your own club night?
I suppose it was the classic case of “I’m now in my early twenties, I’ve been going on nights out for years and nowhere in Glasgow is playing the mix of music I want to dance to”. My big brother Gerry has always had exceptional musical taste, and in the early noughties he was running successful soul events in Cardiff, promoting folk as renowned as Edwin Starr. I had been messing about in bands, the most "successful" of which was The Friday Night Motel (ha ha I am surprised the myspace still works!). I loved the National Pop League in Glasgow because the atmosphere was terrific, and although the playlist was very indie/C86-centric you still heard pretty unusual stuff like Wire, the Smiths, Pavement, Dinosaur Jr and Yo La Tengo. I would also go through to Edinburgh Art School ‘s Wee Red Bar on Saturday nights. The night was (and still is) called “The Egg”. The mix of music was fantastic. They played the Clash, Toots and the Maytals, New Order, the Specials, Pulp, Marvin Gaye, Kraftwerk, Roxy Music, Super Furry Animals, Northern Soul. So, come 2003 I decided I wanted to start a night in Glasgow that offered that sort of quality and variety. I also loved Vic and Bob’s “Big Night Out” and the idea of an “indie disco” with added hilarity. At Pin Ups the jokes were originally confined to articles in the fanzine which we give out to the first 100 through the door, but in recent years we’ve gradually become a bit bolder. There might be an odd “Guest DJ Jesus Christ” or “escaped gorilla” that slightly confuse folk, but by and large such fun has been very warmly received, so much so that folk have started to expect it every month. I call Pin Up Nights a mixture of “new music, chaos and hilarity”.
For you personally, what would you say has been the best thing to happen since you started the night?
Personally, Pin Ups has given me an outlet for whatever creativity I have. It has cemented some prized friendships, it has kept me interested in music, and in the words of fellow Pin Ups chap Paul Smith, “Pin Up Nights has kept us all young”!
Which band/night have you most enjoyed the most?
It really would be impossible to choose. We have met a load of famous musicians and have 101 daft anecdotes as a result. I caught Terry Hall trying to smoke a joint under the DJ decks. A slightly tipsy Florence (of Florence and the Machine) tried to snare a Pin Ups Chap for the evening by giving him her diary (the Chap in question was spoken for - he gallantly went home but returned the diary to her the next day). I got Gary Lightbody past the bouncers and into a sold-out Woodside Social Club (the night Editors DJ’d for us) by getting him to sing “that ‘Light Up’ song” to prove he was the guy who had just headlined Live 8. Justin Currie appeared as our "secret hunky treat" at the Ladies Night earlier this year. Rick Witter of Shed 7 joined the dancefloor during Disco Down. And so on. As far as nights go, our Circus themed one from last September was a bit special. I think people thought we were bluffing, but we had jugglers, magicians, coconut shys and clowns, and thankfully hundreds of people showed up to see it all come together. Bands-wise it was very pleasant to see Glasvegas break through a few years ago. Pin Ups was one of their first gigs. They were friendly and armed with very catchy songs, and I fought their corner on messageboards etc (this was before Scottish music blogs really existed) as they weren’t trendy or embraced by the Glasgow Art School fraternity. I’m actually a bit disappointed more bands we promoted haven’t gone on to bigger things. I was very into Findo Gask, for example. The Fridays have morphed into Astral Planes, which is great. The likes of the Plimptons and Popup won’t be defeated! And I currently have my fingers crossed for the likes of Nevada Base, Sonny Marvello and Mitchell Museum.
You have your very own indoor Festival planned for this months event, what can we expect to see/hear on the night? Am I cool to wear my wellies and my straw hat?
Definitely! I had my wellies on at our first Festival last year. You can expect to hear 4 of Scotland’s best new bands – Sonny Marvello, Micthell Museum, Futuristic Retro Champions, and Campfires in Winter and a smashing selection of DJs – Scott Paterson (Sons and Daughters), Remember Remember (signed to Mogwai’s Rock Action label), the very handsome Craig Brothers, man about town Craig McGee and of course the Pin Ups Chaps. You can expect to see straw, inflatables, glowsticks, cider stands, festival stalls curated by Glasgow collective Made in the Shade, The Mystical Peeling Field and the Legendary Wham Tent! The Festival is an entire Festival experience packed into 6 hours and a lot of good things are going to happen. If we told you about all of them now it would ruin the surprises.
You were recently the ‘victim’ of an online slur campaign on your good name (linkage), did this ever make you start to think about giving the night up at all?
It was disappointing, but giving up never crossed my mind. You can’t let bullies like Un Cadavre win! I offered to meet them, in person, to talk about their grievances. But they refused, boasting about their “online campaign” and saying they were going to publish an article criticising Pin Ups in some magazine or other. So I felt my only means of replying was to write openly about the whole situation. I have thought long and hard about how to make the payment system for bands at Pin Ups as fair as possible. We have used the same system now for 2 and a half years and every month I invite bands to propose a better alternative, and nobody can think of one. I think that proves beyond doubt that it’s as fair as possible. Therefore I believed that Un Cadavre’s online slur campaign was unjust and that we had nothing to hide. I wanted to set out our position, set out the correspondence between Pin Ups and the band, and let people make up their own mind.
Were you surprised by how much support you received from the online music community?
I was incredibly surprised and very grateful. There’s a lot of cool, clever and creative people out there supporting the music scene and it was wonderful to get so much support. I didn’t realise there were so many people who actually knew about Pin Ups or appreciated it in any way. It gave me a real wee boost.
For all the folk out there that haven’t been to Pin Up Nights before, why should they come along?
A common comment I hear from people who finally make the effort to come along to Pin Up Nights is “how did I not know about this sooner?” or “I feel like I’ve really missed out”. If you make it along you will hear a lot of good music – indie, punk, soul, electropop, allsorts really - and you will definitely have fun in the process. Our venue The Flying Duck is really unusual and worth seeing. I also think it’s fair to say that we are consistently ahead of the curve. I see our artwork and ideas ripped off all over the place – imitation. flattery, etc! Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, who is currently getting a hefty push from Radio 1 and Annie Mac, played live for us last September. Wild Beasts, who were nominated for 2010's Mercury Music Prize earlier this week, played Pin Ups in February 2007 and in 2008 we booked MGMT for their first Scottish gig. Stretching back to 2004, we were interviewing and playing Arctic Monkeys, Editors and Kaiser Chiefs months before anybody else. I have video footage somewhere of loads of folk going mental on the dancefloor to “I predict a riot”. It would now probably make for excellent blackmail material!
Would you care to share any of the events that you have lined up for the rest of the year, or should we just learn to expect the unexpected?
Arr arr, if I told you I’d have to make you walk the plank, matey…pass the rum please!
The Pin Up Nights Festival takes place on Friday(30th), once again they have a sterling line up in store for you all, with DJ-sets from Scott Paterson of Sons & Daughters, and Remember Remember (of Mogwai’s Rock Action label), The Fabulous Craig Brothers and the Pin Ups DJs. Plus live sets from Sonny Marvello, Mitchell Museum, Futuristic Retro Champions and Campfires in Winter. In addition to all of that (as if that wasn't enough for you all) they have The magnificent Wham Tent in which you can pay homage to all things Wham! (including wham bars). You can take time out to visit their mysterious, mystical and interactive Peeling Field which will have to be seen to be believed, browse a lovely selection of vintage stalls curated by Glasgow’s very own Made in The Shade. You can expect straw on the floor, folk with glowsticks, tacky inflatables and bunting (really? - there is no need for that kind of thing!). Tickets are only £5 or £4 if you buy them in advance (from their website or through Ticket Scotland). It promises to be a cracking evening, hopefully Mrs Peenko might let me out for the evening... actually who am I kidding I'm sure she'd be happy to get rid of me for the night.
Monday - the excellent Night Noise Team brought some fresh meat to the butchers table Tuesday - Rod Jones and his naked band the Birthday Suit were in session for Vic Galloway. Whilst we had a double helping of Frabbitthanks to our American buddy Ryan 'Cut Here', fucking love that guy. Wednesday - I am becoming a bit of a fanboy when it comes to the French Wives, so I was chuffed to bits to have them enter the hall of the fame that is Scots Way-Hay Thursday - I only heard Aerial Up for the first time a few weeks back on the Podcart, bloody magic they are too. They did a cracking wee session for the Vicmeister Friday - an absolute shed loads of freebies came your way, there were some seriously amazing tunes up for grabs this week.
News, gigs and any other gubbins......
Details of this years Word up Kelburn Garden Party got announced this week, very exciting it looks too. To make things a bit more special this year, they have decided to relocate the main stage and it will be at all new and have are-vamped Viewpoint, complete with decor, lights, seating, visuals and all manner of funky bits. There is also going to be a dance tent in the Tall Trees, put on by Electrikal, plus somewhere in the woods, Ten Tracks are curating the Acoustic Cafe. The line up is still being put together, but so far they announced that the following acts will appear; Broken Records, Meursault, Hidden Orchestra (formerly Joe Acheson Quartet), Alex Cornish, The Staggerats, Captain Slackship's The Mezzanine Allstars, The Ordinary Allstars, Lypsinc For A Lullaby, Stanley Odd, Freaky Family, Raise Your Hem, John Langhan Band, The House of La, and The Set Up. Details on how to get tickets and the like can be found here.
PinUp Nights is back on Friday, fuck knows how they'll manage to top last month Bloggers Delight Night (check the pictures). Well they're certainly giving it a good go, here's the important info.....
Guest Djs: Thomas Hein (These New Puritans), Rosie Cunningham (Ipso Facto), Hahaha (Vendor Defender) And Halleluwah Hits (Glasgow's New Record Shop/Label) Playing Live: Gold Future Joy Machine (London), Nevada Base, Un Cadavre, Miss The Occupier Plus - The Pin Up Djs Playing Their Inimitable Mix Of New And Classic Indie, Punk, Soul And Electropop Across Two Rooms And All The Usual Pin Ups Hilarity And Mayhem You've Come To Expect! £5 Advance Tickets From Tickets Scotland And www.Pinup-Nights.co.uk Fanzine & Badge For 1st 100!
The line up for the T-Break at theis years 'T in the Park' also got announced this week, in case you missed it here's the line line-up in full: Be Like Pablo, French Wives, Fridge Magnets, Kitty The Lion, Kobe Onyame, Lightguides, Make Sparks, Mitchell Museum, Mopp, Night Noise Team, Stanley Odd, The Draymin, Three Blind Wolves, The Ray Summers, The Seventeenth Century and Washington Irving. There's some corkers in there, and some stuff that we'll just skip over. Who says that the decision making is all corrupt, not me, no sir ;)
Also, the campaign to save The Pop Cop hasn't died, the fight it is still on going, head on over to what we hope is a temporary home to fine out more. Any support you can offer would be appreciated, as this just makes me sad.
In case you missed it, the Kays Lavelle album, 'Be Gentle This Still Morning' got released this week. I really like think it's a cracking wee record, well worth the seven quid it's on sale for.
***EDIT***
This arrived late in my inbox and I thought it deserved to be squeezed in , next weekend TBC (Together Beat Cancer) Presents: Dusk Till Dawn. A two part music event designed to raise both funds and awareness for Maggies Centres. The legend that is Jim Gellatly is your host for the evening. With the following acts lined up: ‘Dusk’, Friday - Radio Magnetic Soundsystem DJ’s, Loki and Konchis, Louise McVey and The Cracks in the Concrete and Admiral Fallow. ‘Dawn’, Saturday- Heather Downie, Aaron Wright and the Aprils, Alan McKim and Findlay Napier. Further details can be found here.
Monday - Vegas Nights were my Fresh Meat and Steve Mason's session for Lauren Laverne. Which reminds I had to planned to buy his album. Anyone got it yet? Any good? Tuesday - Call To Mind's session with Vic Galloway, this my first time hearing these guys. They really impressed, I duly bought their EP and was even more impressed. Check it kids! Wednesday - The Scottish Enlightenment were the latest addition to the Scots Way-Hay club. Their new EP is ridiculously good, make sure you get yourself a copy when it comes out on the 10th of May. Thursday - I got a nice surprise as the lovely Fiona from Leith FM put the Last Battle session up to stream, which i duly recorded. Cracking it is too! Friday - Freebies!!! We had a ridiculous number of freebies up for grabs. The Phantom Band live recording from King Tuts got pulled because of the volcano. Not sure how that works as I could have sworn it happened. Thankfully though Mr Galloway pulled a wee belter out of the bag and got Adam Stafford in for a session.
News, gigs and any other gubbins......
With less than a week to go, it's time for yet another shameless for our gig at the Captains Rest. In the unlikely event that you missed it (how could you?!), this coming Friday myself and fellow blogger Jim 'Ayetunes' are taking our first tentative steps into gig promoting. For our first gig we have roped in friends and family and have a line up that the pair of us are still pinching ourselves over. Kid Canaveral, Mitchell Museum and Campfires in Winter, three of my favourite bands out there are doing a gig for this pair of muppets. God knows how we'll be ever manage to conjure up a line up that good ever again. Ticket sales have gone a shit load better than expected, so if you are planning to come along make sure you don't leave it too late. Tickets are only a fiver (four quid if you buy one off the pair of us in advance), hopefully we'll see you there as it'd be great to put names to faces.
We also have an 'unofficial' after party at the Flying Duck, as part of the monthly Pin Up Nights event, 'Blogger's Delight!' Alongside myself, there will be a whole host of top Scottish music bloggers spinning some tunes, including Ed from 17 Seconds , Jason The Pop Cop (who has threatened to dress up as the policeman from the Village People just to predict his real identity*, Nick from The Radar (formerly Under the Radar) and the legendary Halina from the Glasgow Podcart team all guest dj-ing! Actually, Halina is DJ-ing?! That could be interesting after her threatening to get "totally fucked" at our gig before, then again people in glass houses, etc. On top of all of that, there will be live music from Louise Against the Elements, Carmine and Kung Fu! Plus there will also be all of the usual Pin Up DJs showing us how's it supposed to be done! It's only a fiver to get in, although ticket holders from our gig will get £1 off! Lastly, if you're one of the 1st 100 folk through the door you can claim yourself a free fanzine & badge! * Jason might not have actually agreed to this, I live in hope though.
If you are about in Edinburgh next Saturday, then you might want to check out the first ever "Machar Granite presents..." showcase at the Wee Red Bar in Edinburgh. As well as Machar Granite, you can also catch the Lorraine McCauley Band and Tam's Railway. Tickets are £5/4 (non-students / students), the evning kicks off at 7pm. Further details can be found here.
Alternatively, for all you West Coasters out there who fancy a Saturday night on the tiles, then you can check out Ace City Racers at The Vicky Bar (I think that's upstairs in The Clutha) in Glasgow. It's being touted as a May Day Tea Party, with the added bonus of lots of cakes and a Classic Indie DJ set from DJ Tam Coyle to boot. Further information can be found here.
