Jeffrey Lewis and the Junkyard – Stereo, Glasgow

‘I might not be in magazines as a heart-throb face’ sings Jeffrey Lewis on ‘Cult Boyfriend’, ‘but in a few devoted places I’ve found a strong fanbase’. Glasgow, it appears, has joined the ever-growing list of cities to be captivated by the idiosyncratic charm of the man Jarvis Cocker described as ‘the best lyricist working [...]

Jesse Malin – Brel, Glasgow

There is a snobbery amongst music fans that can best be described as ‘the thing that I know about and you don’t know about is better than the thing we both know about’.  It posits that the obscure is often better than the obvious. It’s elitist, it’s divisive and it’s often fun. It’s also often [...]

Low – Glasgow, Classic Grand

Vespertine checks out a band who could be safely called the Ryan Giggs of alt. For their longevity, of course. Not for that other thing. Reviewing a Low gig is not always something one can approach without caution. They sound like….well, themselves. And they sound like themselves a lot. Now some people who are unfamiliar [...]

Whippet out – The Ramonas, Glasgow ABC2

Our intrepid punk preacher Howlin Whippet hits town in search of thrills and finds them in the form of the world’s only all-girl Ramones tribute band. I still, to this day, find it amazing that people exist who don’t unconditionally love The Ramones. They epitomise everything that’s good about music. 2 minute songs, great melodies, energy, [...]

Whippet out – Marc Almond, Glasgow ABC

Did you know the Whippet goes everywhere with a bible and a gun? His argument is it’s better to have them and not need them than need them and not have them. Laudable words. He set out in the blizzards to further the 80s kick he’s been on by seeing everyone’s favourite half of Soft [...]

Thoughts from a gig – Drive-By Truckers, Glasgow

Our very own country-punk preacher man Howlin Whippet made his way to see Drive-By Truckers on a filthy Novemeber night. This is how he saw it.   Cold, miserable night in pre-Xmas Glasgow. Sauchiehall Street full of alcopop-waving, tinsel-bedecked, barely clad revellers. And that’s just the blokes.

Glasgow gig alert – Ólöf Arnalds

Anybody all dressed up but nowhere to go this weekend? Well, you could do worse than dusting down the gladrags and checking out Icelandic singer-songwriter Ólöf Arnalds. She plays the Captain’s Rest in Glasgow on Saturday night. Her gorgeous take on Icelandic folk is well worth an hour of your time. Here she is performing ‘Klara’ [...]

Dinosaur Jr & Built to Spill – Glasgow, ABC

When the world was two decades younger, young men and women dressed in plaid shirts and Sonic Youth t-shirts ruled the world. Well, at least the cooler pages of the Melody Maker. What came to be known as grunge in the wake of Nirvana’s epoch-shattering success was really less a movement and more a loose [...]

LCD Soundsystem – Glasgow Barrowlands

Music exists to move you. Sometimes your head, sometimes your feet, but always; that’s what it’s for. It is a rare act who can do both at the same time. But midway through a thunderous, epic ‘All My Friends’ – the sort of dark classic Ian Curtis may well have gone on to create if [...]

ELM Presents – Fram

ELM Presents kicks off in May with a show at Glasgow’s 13th Note. Headlining will be Scots post-rockers Fram, whose debut This is How We Live Now was one of 2008′s best kept secrets. We talked to frontman Scot van den Akker about all things music: ELM Presents – we’re excited; how are you feeling [...]

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