gigsinscotland-blog

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Chatting with Biffy Clyro’s James Johnston

Biffy Clyro live from Glasgow Summer Sessions, Bellahouston Park, 2016 Photo credit: Ryan Johnston (ryanjohnston.co)

It’s karaoke time – name a few of your go-to tunes.

Anything by The Beatles. Though I normally leave it up to my wife, she’s much better than I am.

They are making a movie of your life, who plays you and why?

He’d need to be a ginger. Damien Lewis, although he’d need to lose a foot in height. But I’m sure he could capture my brooding intensity.

Who would you invite to you dinner party and why?

Robert Burns, Donald Trump (to give him what’s for) and Michael Jackson.

Favourite track from the new album and why?

Friends and Enemies, because of the way it came together and evolved in the studio. It has a really great feel to it, and shows the band is always moving forward.

Your run of gigs at King Tut’s is still held up as being a highlight of the venue’s history – what has been your favourite Biffy gig and why?

We had a series of three gigs at the Barrowlands, similar to the Tut’s ones. I’d probably say it was the final night of those Barras gigs. We asked the audience to pick the setlist which meant we had to know about 115 songs. Seeing people down at the front, standing together because they’d become friends with each other through our band was special. It’s beautiful when music brings people together like that.

Who would you like to collaborate/work with who you haven’t worked with before?

Annie Lennox. She has such a beautiful voice and she tries her hand at all sort of different styles of music. If she ever feels like joining us in the studio, we’d love to do a song with her.

Top three things that keep you going on tour

-       A bath every night. Otherwise you end up minging.

-       Having friends around you.

-       Earplugs on the tour bus – it blocks out the snoring!

Biffy Clyro play Glasgow SSE Hydro (29th Nov) and Aberdeen GE Oil & Gas Arena (30th Nov). Tickets on general sale on 2nd September from www.gigsinscotland.com or by calling 08444 999 990. Support on both dates comes from Brand New.

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Blaenavon are playing King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Tue 31st May 2016

How would you describe your sound in just a few words?

Progressive alternative rock.

This has been a packed 2016 so far, what helps you to keep your feet firmly on the ground?

Realising that when the music stops we still live with our parents.

What most excites you to play in Glasgow?

The last couple of shows we've done (with Songhoy Blues and Sundara Karma) have been wicked: everyone seems into it, enthusiastic and ready to get bombarded by loud noise. We're stoked about coming back and playing our own proper set to these legends.

What’s it like working with Grammy-nominated producer Jim Abbiss?

Fantastic - he's taken the record in exactly the direction we hoped for and added great things to the songs. We still feel like the band we were before, but just the best version - thanks to Jim. He's also a solid geezer so the vibe and the relationships remained healthy and ripe with banter throughout.

Who are your musical influences?

Ben: Elliott Smith is my man if I'm being honest. The number one by far. Also super into Pavement.

Frank: Becoming friends with the band 'Famy' taught us that real people make great music, instead of superhumans. This was an important lesson, and gave us the confidence to find our own sound.

Harris: Smog - lovely grit. I like Bill Callahan's style.

What’s behind your name, Blaenavon? It’s a town in south eastern Wales, isn’t it?

Tis - it's a beautiful place. We went on a school trip there and were taken aback by some scenery - the big pit especially. It made sense at the time to name our band after it.

Finally, who would you like to play you in a film about the band?

Frank: Michael Cera

Harris: John Cleese

Ben: Kristen Stewart

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On Track: April Towers

April Towers name tracks for the following topics and explain why they’ve chosen them. They are playing King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Wed 6th April 2016.

1. The Old One

Arcadia: This was our first ever single as April Towers and will always remain close to our hearts. 

2. The Party One

Modern Psyche: We always play this song early in our sets as we consider it a bit of a party starter!

3. The Weepy One

The Last Light: This one is a new addition to our setlist and is a slower, more ambient affair,

4. The New One

Silent Fever: Our forthcoming single - keep your eyes peeled!

5. The “Only One”

A Little Bit Of Fear: It's crazy what this song has done for us a band. Without doubt it has become our biggest crowd pleaser!

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Chat with April Towers

April Towers are playing King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Wed 6th April 2016.

Playing the iconic King Tut’s must be exciting for you – are you looking forward to sharing your tunes with a Scottish audience? Kings Tut’s has been a name that has been thrown up again and again since we first started making music together, so to finally get the opportunity to play there is a huge moment for us. We were lucky enough to play Live At Glasgow earlier this year, and pretty much every band we spoke to told us what a great venue it was. Hopefully we can bring the AT party to the city once again and get people dancing!

What are your musical influences? How would you describe your sound? We have a range of influences between the two of us, but the likes of LCD Soundsystem, Hot Chip, Radiohead and Interpol are ones that particularly stand out. We spend a lot of time sat in a van when we are on tour delving through the archive of music that has shaped our sound in one way another – some pretty obscure ones have been thrown up of late! Our sound is a fusion of some of the classic 80s bands like New Order, Depeche Mode and Duran Duran combined with the contemporary elements of acts like Chvrches, Everything Everything and Ghost Culture.

What should people expect from an April Towers gig? Our shows are all about energy. We want people to leave an April Towers gig with a smile on their face and feeling like they have been a part of something really exciting. We have also gained a reputation for being purveyors of on-stage banter, but we'll let you be the judge of that!

We love your track “A Little Bit Of Fear”. Can you recommend one of your tracks that our followers should go and listen to? Thank you very much! One of our personal favourites is a track called 'Running Blind', which is the B-side to our first single. It's one of our lesser known songs, but always gets a great reaction when we throw it into the set!

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JR Green’s Lucky 7

Modern Folk duo JR Green play King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Saturday 30th January as part of Celtic Connections 2016

It’s karaoke time – name a few of your go-to tunes. Nessen Dorma, every time.

They are making a movie of your life, who plays you and why? Queen Latifah for me and Ryan Gosling for Jake. I think they'd nail us.

Who would you invite to you dinner party and why? Probably all our family – we're two of eight so they would probably get a bit upset if we didn't.

If you had to eat a meal for the rest of life what would it be? Spaghetti Bolognaise or Bangers and Mash-reckon Jake would say something along the same lines.

What animal are you? Gorilla.

Zombie Apocalypse or Rise of the Robots – what one to you fancy your chances in and why? I've never liked technology so I'd take delight in pissing on robots and watching sparks start shooting everywhere.

What superpower do you wish you had? Wish I could travel in time.

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Chat with JR Green

Modern Folk duo JR Green play King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Saturday 30th January as part of Celtic Connections 2016

So, Celtic Connections 2016 is in full swing. What do you like about the festival? We love the fact that musicians of all nationalities and cultures is brought to one city to one city to perform and celebrate music.

Playing the iconic King Tut’s must be exciting for you – are you looking forward to sharing your tunes with the famous Glasgow audience? We've played Tut’s only once before and it was amazing and a real milestone in our careers, to be able to play there again so soon afterwards is extremely exciting and we can't wait.

What are your musical influences? How would you describe your sound? Growing up our Mum was a huge fan of traditional and folk music and we learnt to play ceilidh music in school. We were also huge fans of bands like The Strokes, The Libertines, Arcade Fire, The Cribs, Frightened Rabbit and The Pogues. I'd say our music is for anyone who is a fan of any of those bands but there is definitely a huge traditional influence there as well.

What should people expect from your show this week? A few of our songs are quite lively and up-tempo. We would like for people to respond to these by dancing, erratically if possible.

Can you recommend one track of yours – whet people’s appetite ahead of the gig on Saturday. 'Nigerian Princess' was our debut single that came out in October last year – I think it captures our sound quite well and the overall response to it has been encouraging.

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The LaFontaines’ Lucky Seven

The LaFontaines play Barrowland Ballroom on Saturday 7th November. They will be supported by Eliza and the Bear + Model Aeroplanes.

1. It’s karaoke time – name a few of your go-to tunes  Coolio - Gangsters Paradise, Busted – Year 3000, Jungle Book – King Of The Swingers & Limp Bizkit – Rollin

2. They are making a movie of your life, who plays you and why?  Nicholas Cage as I’m allergic to bees and he’s already got the main catchphrase of the film down.

3. Who would you invite to you dinner party and why? If I had an ideal celebrity come dine with me I think I’d go with Katie Hopkins, Stephen Fry and Karl Pilkington as I wouldn’t have to make much conversation myself. I think Katie Hopkins would maybe implode which would also be nice. Stephen Fry would likely win in every aspect but he seems like a lovely bloke so I’d be ok with that. I don’t think Karl Pilkington needs an explanation.

4. If you had to eat a meal for the rest of life what would it be? Rare venison steak with a side of mac and cheese with bacon. Just because that’s sort of two good meals and I feel like I’ve cheated the question slightly. It’s apparently completely normal to ask for meals with sides of another dish nowadays so another side of lasagne also.

5. What animal are you? Junior Dragon.

6. Zombie Apocalypse or Rise of the Robots – what one to you fancy your chances in? That depends on the type of zombies but assuming they’re slow and stupid I’d definitely go with them. I don’t fancy my chances against a terminator but I could possibly take on old Dougie from down the road who’s walking even slower than when he had his hip replacement.

7. What superpower do you wish you had? Time travel is definitely the best superpower, just so I could do over situations until I got it right like in Click. Like for when you get a bad haircut or want to stop yourself from falling face first through a window frame on film as I’ve heard can happen to people occasionally.  

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The LaFontaines: On Track

The LaFontaines’ Darren McCaughey shares 5 songs that mean something to him. The Fonts play Barrowland Ballroom on Saturday 7th November. They will be supported by Eliza and the Bear + Model Aeroplanes. Get tickets here 

1. The Old One

Limp Bizkit’s ���Rollin’. This was the first music that I bought on my own. I had been given a portable CD player for my birthday just as this song came out and was number 1 in the charts. It has obviously had a long lasting effect on me since our band is not the same but shares similar qualities to this amazing band and song.

2. The Party One

Hudson Mohawke ‘Scud Books’ I think this one of the most triumphant songs I’ve ever heard. Not really a party song in the traditional sense but it makes me feel pretty great every time I listen to it.

3. The Weepy One

It’s  Mogwai – ‘Mogwai Fear Satan’.  If I’m sad I don’t really want to listen to any music with lyrics so this is pretty good for that. I like how it’s a super emotional journey but the main basis of the song is this really simple 3 note pattern played over and over for 16 minutes.

4. The New One

Justin Bieber ‘Sorry’.  I picked this one because it’s the most recent but all 3 songs Justin Bieber has released this year are incredible. I get that people hate him or whatever but he’s super talented and by hooking up with Blood Diamonds & Skrillex on the production of this track has made something really special and unique.

5. The “ONLY ONE”

The Streets ‘Turn The Page’. I don’t think I could only live with one song but Mike Skinner is one of my favourite musicians and someone I respect greatly. This is the first song on his debut album and is the perfect opener to a perfect album.       

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Honne: On Track

Honne share five tracks that mean something them. The duo play Stereo, Wed 14th October. Get your tickets here.

1. The Old One

The song that kicked off my love affair with music was probably ‘Earth Song’ by Michael Jackson. His music was the first time that I heard something and became fascinated by how good and unique it sounded; how catchy every melody was and how rhythmical his songs were – even his vocals were very percussive with the sounds he made in between singing. I saw him play at Wembley Stadium when I was a boy and it blew my mind.

2. The Party One 

One track that gets us ready for the dance floor is Destiny's Child – ‘Bills, Bills, Bills’. It's just a fun, upbeat track that instantly takes us back to our early teenage years. Everyone loves to do that now and again don't they?

3. The Weepy One

My favourite track to put on if I'm a bit sad or reflective is ‘Wisconsin’ by Bon Iver, from the album For Emma, Forever Ago. There's something special about that whole album for me. I frequently listen to it all the way through, particularly whilst travelling. It's one of albums that, as soon as you put it on, it jogs your memory and takes you back to wherever you've listened to it before.

4. The New One

One new track we've been listening to a lot lately is Thundercat's  “Them Changes”. We are big fans of his bass playing and the work he's done with the likes of Flying Lotus, Kendrick Lamar etc so when he put this mini album out we got very excited.  We were lucky enough to see him perform it with Flying Lotus when we played at Bestival this year, which was an unexpected treat. 

5. The Only One

If we had to pick one track only, this would have to be ‘Money Trees’  by Kendrick Lamar. If you happen to be in Bow, East London at night, there's a strong possibility you'd hear this song blasting out the windows of James' 1997 Peugeot 306 (a.k.a The Silver Bullet). It's a brilliant song with so many levels and for that reason we could never tire of it. It also uses a sample from Beach House's ‘Silver Soul’ which makes it even cooler.

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Five Hot Tickets

The hottest tickets you can get your hands on… OFT, they’re hot!

Rudimental

Tue 13th Oct, Corn Exchange, Edinburgh 

Piers Agget, Amir Amor  Kesi Dryden and DJ Locksmith played a heroic set at T in the Park  this year making the place ‘Feel the Love’. There will be some banging drum and bass tunes from the Hackney lads, so make sure you’ve got your dancing shoes ON and your signature moves turned up to 11.

Johnny Marr

Tues 13th Oct , Ironworks, Inverness   Wed 19th Oct, Liquid Room, Edinburgh

The Smiths legend and co-writer of some solid-gold classics will be touching down in Inverness and Edinburgh. Marr has been there and done that in a career spanning over three decades, each of his live performances incorporate his amazing back catalogue and highlight how much of a pioneer he is. Must. See. Must. Hear. 

Honne

Wed 14th, Stereo,  Glasgow Synths at the ready! Andy and James will be bringing some love to Stereo. Expect sensual tunes from the lads who say they make “serious babymaking sounds”. Get along to see them and check out ‘Warm on a Cold Night’ for a wee taster. 

Ryan Bingham

Sat 24th, Oran Mor, Glasgow This man is pure Americana. Bingham has a bucket-load of awards with a Grammy under his belt for ‘Weary Kind’, hit tune from Crazy Heart starring Jeff Bridges. He’ll be joined by Sons of Bill for a night of country infused musing. Check out ‘Until I’m one with You’ for a taste.

Lady Leshurr

Sun 25th, O2 ABC2, Glasgow BBRAP, BRRRAP…word on the street is that Lady Leshurr has been ripping it up down South for some time. Poet, songwriter and freestyler; the Lady even wrote the ‘Queen’s Speech’ – an epic freestyle delivery over a series of installments. It’s better than the real Queen’s speech and much more relevant to the yoof, innit. 

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Chat with INHEAVEN

“Scotland has an amazing musical heritage” — INHEAVEN

INHEAVEN will play alongside VANT and The Big Moon as part DIY Presents Neu Tour. They play Electric Circus Edinburgh on October 8 and King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on October 9.

So tell us about the tour? What’s the idea behind it? 

DIY got us together with 2 great up and coming bands and made it into an 11 date tour. We cannot wait, it's a fantastic opportunity for us to play up and down the country for the first time.

You are playing 11 dates across the UK sharing the bill with two other bands – will there be bust-ups on the tour bus or are you all good pals? 

Sorry to be boring but it's all about being pals! We've played with Vant before who are really nice guys.

Playing the iconic King Tut’s must be exciting for you – are you looking forward to sharing your tunes with a Scottish audience?

Yes we are. Scotland has an amazing musical heritage, from the Cocteau Twins, The Vaselines, obviously The Jesus and Mary Chain. We are actually looking forward to the Scottish dates the most!

What are your musical influences? How would you describe your sound?

I guess very noisy, yet sensitive at the same time.

So after you wow King Tut’s - is T in the Park on the radar?

We hope so! That's the dream anyway.

Can you recommend one track of yours and one for you co-headliners on the tour – something to whet their appetite ahead of the gig

Our next single is called Bitter Town and we've just released a video for that online. I'd say check that out. And Vant have a great song called Parasite which everyone should listen to.

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INHEAVEN’s Lucky Seven:

INHEAVEN will play alongside VANT and The Big Moon as part DIY Presents Neu Tour. They play Electric Circus Edinburgh on Thu 8th October and King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut on Fri 9th October.

1. It’s karaoke time – name a few of your go-to tunes. Tina turner - The Best That bloke (Chris De Burgh) - Lady in Red

2. They are making a movie of your life, who plays you and why? James: Al Pacino because he's got a dark side Chloe: Winona Ryder or Diane Keaton. Both are effortlessly cool.

3. Who would you invite to you dinner party and why Elvis and Pricilla. No explanation needed!

4. If you had to eat a meal for the rest of life what would it be Pizza

5. What animal are you We are a Wolfpack

6. Zombie Apocalypse or Rise of the Robots – what one to you fancy your chances in and why? Zombie Apocalypse (we've watched a lot of Walking Dead)

7. What superpower do you wish you had Read people's mind