The Skinny January 2023

Spotlight on...

In honour of Blue Monday, The Skinny's favourite songs with a colour in the title

ELO — Mr Blue Sky

Jefferson Airplane — White Rabbit

Nena — 99 Red Balloons

Parquet Courts — Light Up Gold II

LCD Soundsystem — Sound of Silver Glass Candy — Digital Versicolor

Cardi B — Bodak Yellow

Frank Ocean — Pink Matter

Eiffel 65 — Blue (Da Ba Dee)

Janelle Monáe — Pynk

Gogol Bordello — Start Wearing Purple

Cocteau Twins — Cherry-coloured Funk

Lorde — Green Light

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard — Magenta Mountain

D'Angelo — Brown Sugar

Mitski — Blue Light

Listen to this playlist on Spotify — search for 'The Skinny Office Playlist' or scan the below code

Issue 204, January 2023 © Radge Media Ltd. Get in touch: E: hello@theskinny.co.uk

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Championing creativity in Scotland

Meet the team

We asked – What's the furthest you've got with a New Year's resolution?

Rosamund West Editor-in-Chief

"Have I ever told you about my four days of Veganuary, 2017? No? We clearly haven't met."

"Pretty sure I lasted a week of Veganuary 2017."

Anahit Behrooz Events Editor, Books Editor

"I read Les Misérables (in the original French, no less!!) for three months and then I quite simply stopped."

"I’m usually so skint in the new year that I have to give up all nice things anyway. So I guess my resolutions usually last until around the last Friday of January."

"I gave up fizzy juice once and lasted a fair few years without it. Then I started working in the club scene, and drinking Jägerbombs every night to stay awake was not the one."

Heléna Stanton Clubs Editor

"My last NY resolution was to not 'clang' while DJing. Haven't necessary failed but I still also clang mixes together."

Glynn Comedy Editor

"I got through 2019 with only three disposable coffee cups. Promptly forgot this was a thing I was doing after COVID and the bureau lost records for subsequent years."

Rho Chung Theatre Editor

"I resolved never to make a new year's resolution in 2001, and I have no plans to start. Quit while you're ahead."

Business

"Unsure but I was quite a stubborn child. I'd like to think I put that to good use for at least one resolution."

Production

"I don't make new year’s resolution, although judging by what happened in 2022, I probably should start making them. "

Editorial Sales

Lewis Robertson Digital Editorial Assistant

"My 2022 resolution was to buy different clothes to switch up my wardrobe. I'm not sure why. My 2023 resolution will be to work out how to sell stuff on Depop."

"In 2018 I resolved to be more of a bitch. Feedback has been mixed."

"Last year I resolved to drink more, gain weight, save less money and to keep lying to myself about making unsustainable lifestyle changes. It’s been going fabulously "

"I'm pretty good at dry january, although usually fall off the wagon at Burns night - I just love that old bard!!"

Sandy

Park Commercial Director

"I've told myself I'd get my driving license every year for forever yet here I am, still just walking everywhere. 2023 is my year!"

Tom McCarthy Creative Projects Manager

"I quit smoking at the start of 2019 and have not looked back. If you are considering qutting it is a wonderful gift to give yourself."

Sully Sales and Brand Strategist

"The only resolution I've ever successfully stuck to is cutting sugar out of my hot drinks c2013. No more free-pouring Tate & Lyle direct from the bag."

Jamie Dunn

Film Editor, Online Journalist

Polly

Peter Simpson Digital Editor, Food & Drink Editor

Eilidh Akilade Intersections Editor

George

Harvey Dimond Art Editor

Laurie Presswood General Manager

Tallah Brash Music Editor

Dalila D'Amico Art Director, Production Manager

Phoebe Willison Designer

Editorial

Words: Rosamund West

Happy New Year! 2022 was another shitshow, but we’re approaching 2023 with a bit more optimism than we felt 12 months ago. We’re at least mildly confident that a lot of the stuff we’ve written about in this issue will happen, which is a definite improvement on the last two years. The fact that our cover line is not ‘All correct at time of writing’ is surely a cause for celebration.

In the spirit of new beginnings and also trend forecasting, we look ahead to the coming months of culture in Scotland. An issue theme of Scottish culture? Surely that is the theme every month, I hear you cry! Weeeeellll it’s been a long year and this is what we’re working with.

Our music editor has pulled together a list of musicians to watch out for in 2023 with a three-page special profiling some of the country’s freshest talent. 2023 is surely the year the ‘hip-hop-harp’ is going to cross over into the mainstream. Jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie had an incredible 2022, bringing new audiences to his genre with his SAY Award-winning album Forest Floor. We meet him ahead of his January Celtic Connections show to find out what 2023 has in store.

Books talks to Kirsty Logan about her third novel Now She Is Witch, a Middle Ages-set historical fantasy which seeks to explore a more nuanced representation of the witch through a queer lens. Art takes a trip to Perth, and meets Rachel Maclean to learn more about ambushing shoppers with contemporary art as she relocates her Mimi installation to the central Scottish

high street. Clubs talks to Glasgow’s TAAHLIAH, who’s building on the momentum of an award-winning 2022 with a spectacular new live show, The Ultimate Angels arriving in SWG3 in February.

Theatre continues our unexpected tour of the central Highlands, with a preview of a new production coming to Pitlochry Festival Theatre this month. We talk to Tonderai Munyevu about his contribution to three-part audio drama and stage production Blaccine, exploring post-pandemic pain and vaccine hesitancy within the Black British community. Looking ahead to March, we talk to four Scottish textile designers who have been selected by Craft Scotland to exhibit at Collect, the internationally-renowned art fair, this year.

Leaving the Scottishsphere, Film talks to Laura Poitras about All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, her new documentary on visionary photographer Nan Goldin and her later career as an activist in the opioid crisis. Mark Jenkin discusses Enys Men, his new 70s-set tale of isolation on a desolate Cornish island which reveals, amongst other things, the Cornish preoccupation with throwing stones down disused mine shafts. And Music talks to Fucked Up’s guitarist Mike Haliechuk about going back to basics to record an album in one day.

ICYMI, our centre spread should give you an idea of how amazing our 200th issue party was. If you weren’t there, you really missed out. Finally, we close with The Skinny on… Joesef with a perfect mix of insight and hilarity. Welcome to 2023.

Cover Artist

Tim Romanowsky is a visual artist and 2D-animator based in Leipzig, Germany. His work moves between abstraction and figuration in paintings or moving pictures, working both physically and digitally to explore new shapes and compositions to create his visual-cosmos. Since 2015 he’s been running the label LORO with his wife Stefhany Y. Lozano to promote and sell their publications, prints, sweaters and patches. As well as all this, he teaches experimental drawing in an art university.

timromanowsky.com instagram.com/timowskee lorohouse.bigcartel.com

Love Bites: Revising Our Story

nd the rest is history” has always followed how my now-husband and I tell of the first time we met. Like much of history itself, a fair amount of revisionism was undertaken. We met in the winter of 2014, and the lore of our relationship has always been this: we met at a poetry evening, where I enjoyed pints while he read some of his poems. I did see him read a poem, that’s true enough, but I went on a night out with friends instead. A week or so later, we matched on Tinder.

“A

The wild frontiers of apps were just beginning to take hold on the dating scene. Back then, I felt that dating apps implied a subtext of transactional and deeply impersonal and cringey romantic encounters. They were generally thought of as a sordid way to get a ride (or in non-Irish parlance: to ‘hook-up’). Our matching on Tinder couldn’t have been further from this. I still contend that we were (probably) the first on that app to discuss the works of Cormac McCarthy.

This summer, my now-husband and I literally tied the knot, with an ancient Celtic tradition which symbolised our two lives intertwining together. In a more modern wedding ritual, the bridal party interviewed him and screened it at the Hen Party. With that: the truth was out. Jaws dropped – mostly those of the older generation in the room, their belief in our crossing paths at a literary event forever shattered. The revelation that we had created a fable of how we met was tempered by laughter.

The entanglement of technology and dating is a different landscape now. Everyone is on these apps. I’m no longer embarrassed about our Tinder origins; finding love online is the norm now. I never dreamt that swiping right would lead to adopting a dog and grocery shopping forever with that person, but it did, and the whole thing – it’s bliss.

Heads Up

Celtic Connections

January is always a quiet month, but there are still some gems to be found (and done): from unending folk magic at Celtic Connections to excellent film screenings and vibe-y parties.

by Anahit Behrooz

Various venues, Glasgow, 19 Jan-5 Feb Celtic Connections, Scotland’s blow-out celebration of folk, trad, and world music, returns for over two weeks, with intimate gigs, grand concerts and workshops taking place across Glasgow’s music venues. Highlights from this year include Moroccan-French rock band Bab L’Bluz, indie-folk darling Old Sea Brigade, and Glasgowbased duo CLR theory launching their debut album.

L’étoile

Francis of Delirium Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, 31 Jan, 7pm

For fans of the soft, yearning pop-rock of Mitski and Japanese Breakfast, Luxembourg-based duo Francis of Delirium are a dreamy mix of determined grunge and Gen Z vulnerability. With three EPs under their belt, their music has the distinct style and bold lyricism usually reserved for much longer-established bands – catch them now before they blow up.

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow, 28 Jan-3 Feb, 7:15pm

A perfect comedy of errors, this mischievous opera by Emmanuel Chabrier has it all: a king in disguise, a princess falling in love with a peddler, mistaken death and poor astrology. Directed by BAFTA award-winning P J Harris, conducted by French conductor Philippe Forget and performed by students at Glasgow’s prestigious Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, this is highbrow art at its silliest.

Big Joanie

Mono, Glasgow, 14 Jan, 8pm

Start the year off right with a little dose of anarchy. London-based punk-rock group Big Joanie released their sophomore album Back Home just a couple of months ago to widespread acclaim; exploring ideas of Black feminism and political resistance, their music is as incisive as it is irresistible, spanning genres of gothic folk, synthpop, and hard-edged electronica.

Joesef

Church, Dundee, 15 Jan, 7pm

Glasgow-based pop rising star Joesef has had a meteoric few years: there’s been the BBC Sound of 2020 and SAY Award nominations, two EPs and a slew of gorgeous live shows. Now with his debut album en route this month, he’s back on the road. Brimming with charm and infectious funk, find his live gigs across Scotland, including this intimate stop-off in Dundee in collaboration with Assai Records.

Bikini Body

The Hug and Pint, Glasgow, 7 Jan, 7pm

King Tut’s, Glasgow, 27 Jan, 8:30pm

Andromeda Sounds

The Bongo Club, Edinburgh, 25 Jan, 11pm

Known for their dreamy club night combining sonically and visually striking atmospherics, Andromeda Sounds’ nights are some of the most unique of the Scottish capital’s. This month sees them invite Leedsbased Adam Pit, whose expansive, colourful melodies meld techno, trance, and breakbeat, with support from Edinburgh sister duo Adelphi Sound and Andromeda residents, Harry Turner and Otis Kelly.

Into the Distance

RSA: Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, 14 Jan-1 Mar

Compiled

Brontes

Bikini Body

Photo: Perry O'Bray, Buffet

Image: courtesy of artist

Image: courtesy of artist and RSA

Photo: Pit Reding

Francis of Delirium

Photo: Laura May Grogan Image: courtesy of Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Photo: Sam Keeler

Image: courtesy of Andromeda Sound

Photo: Nathan Dunphy

Charm of Finches for Celtic Connections

L'ětoile Big Joanie

Adam Pits for Andromeda Sounds

Joesef

Pop Mutations:

Aquarian + Bake + DJ Amtrak Stereo, Glasgow, 13 Jan, 11pm

An experimental, genre-bending night, this DJ lineup presented by Pop Mutations straddles the gaps between techno, electro and jungle. Welcoming Aquarian, Canadian-born, Berlin-based DJ and producer, and his particular brand of cinematic, grandstand rave to Glasgow, the night kicks off with Glasgow favourite Bake and Subcity Radio regular DJ Amtrak.

anywhere in the universe

Common Guild, Glasgow, 28 Jan-16 Jul

A stunning collective project addressing the role of the public library in our political and social lives, this series of artist commissions by Rabiya Choudhry, Kate Davis, Sean Edwards, Onyeka Igwe, and Yuri Pattison is presented in situ, disrupting the idea of the gallery space as the sole conductor of art. From illuminated signage in East End libraries to performances addressing histories of institutional formation, find these pieces across the city.

We’re Not in Kansas Anymore

Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow, until 10 Jan Inspired by the recent documentary Lynch/Oz, which explores the sympathies and entanglements between master of surrealism David Lynch and, if you think about it, one of the weirdest films to have been made, The Wizard of Oz, this season at Glasgow Film Theatre has some real gems, from Blue Velvet in 4K and Wild at Heart to the OG inspiration itself.

Omid Djalili: The Good Times

The Stand Glasgow, 29 Jan, 6:30pm

Cocoon

An Inspector Calls

Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, 31 Jan-4 Feb

When an inspector turns up on their doorstep without warning, the wealthy, thoughtless Birling family are forced to confront the spectres of their past. Staged by multi-award winning director Stephen Daldry (Billy Elliot! The Hours!), this National Theatre production of JB Priestley’s classic class warfare whodunnit is as propulsive now as when it first was revived almost 30 years ago.

Koyaanisqatsi

DCA: Dundee Contemporary Arts, 18 Jan, 6:30pm

In association with the V&A Dundee’s groundbreaking exhibition Plastic: Remaking Our World, which is open until the start of February, DCA are screening Godfrey Re io’s experimental 1983 film Koyaanisqatsi. Making landmark use of time-lapse and slow-motion footage of cities and natural landscapes across the United States, Koyaanisqatsi is a stunning exploration of the relationship between the human and non-human.

John Kindness: The Odyssey

Summerhall, Edinburgh, until 28 Feb

Splashed across Summerhall’s Main Hall ceiling and the walls of the Old Lab, John Kindness’s The Odyssey draws inspiration from James Joyce’s Ulysses and its reinvigoration of well-established myth. As Scylla and Charybdis emerge onto a toilet seat and Odysseus’s son listens to albums by The Sirens and The Gorgons, The Odyssey asks how we evolve alongside the stories we tell.

Enys Men + Director Q&A

Cameo Cinema, Edinburgh, 11 Jan, 8pm

Launch Party Leith Depot, Edinburgh, 6 Jan, 8pm

All details were correct at the time of writing, but are subject to change. Please check organisers’ websites for up to date information.

Photo: Marilena Vlachopoulou

Image: courtesy of The Stand

Omid Djalili

Photo: Steve Tanner

Image: courtesy of artist

courtesy of

Glasgow Film Theatre

courtesy of artist

An Inspector Calls

a so-called

archive, Onyeka Igwe for anywhere in the universe Wild at Heart for We're Not in Kansas Anymore

What's On

Music

Welcome to January 2023! This time last year, things were being cancelled left, right and centre, but at the time of writing this (mid-December 2022) we’re feeling a lot more hopeful for 2023, and January is looking pretty braw, with gig series and festivals aplenty taking over Glasgow already – it is a UNESCO city of music after all.

The Hug & Pint kick things off early with their fortnight of First Footing shows (3-18 Jan); our top picks include Edinburgh punks Bikini Body (7 Jan), pop-rock artist Megan Black (13 Jan), angular fuzzy rock outfit The Wife Guys of Reddit (14 Jan) and the return of Posable Action Figures (15 Jan). Across town, the annual King Tut’s New Year’s Revolution is also back (4-28 Jan), with shows from Pinc Wafer (7 Jan), Pretty Preacher’s Club (8 Jan), Rosie H Sullivan (21 Jan) and Swiss Portrait (26 Jan), whose summer-soaked bops are sure to warm up the coldest of winter nights.

Celtic Connections returns this month too, celebrating folk, trad and world music effortlessly, not to mention abundantly. Taking place from 19 January, the festival creeps its way into the first week of February too; 20 January is a particularly packed day early in proceedings with performances from Vanives and kitti (St. Luke’s), Lewis McLaughlin and NANI (CCA), CLR Theory (The Glad Cafe) and Fergus McCreadie (The Mackintosh Church) just some of what you can see that day. Later in the run, catch Callum Easter at CCA (27 Jan), Rozi Plain and Terra Kin at Drygate Brewery (29 Jan), The Twilight Sad and Michael Timmons at Old Fruitmarket (29 Jan) and Broken Chanter at The Hug & Pint (31 Jan). The Twilight Sad also perform a special stripped back set as part of Edinburgh’s Burns & Beyond festival in Edinburgh on 28 January at Assembly Rooms, with The Kinnaris Quintet playing the following night with special guests Julie Fowlis and Karine Polwart

Also in January, there are some glorious early shows happening at Mono, with Florist bringing their sublime self-titled album to the venue on the 5th, while London feminist punk troupe Big Joanie continue to celebrate their latest effort Back Home on the 14th. A week later, risqué Swedish rockers Viagra Boys will show the Barrowlands how it’s done on the 21st, before hometown heroes The Delgados play the same spot on the 25th. In Edinburgh, Glasgow outfit The Joy Hotel play The Mash House (21 Jan), while Welsh pop-punk trio The Bug Club stop by The Voodoo Rooms (25 Jan) before playing Dundee’s Beat Generator Live! (26 Jan), The Tooth and Claw, Inverness (27 Jan) and The Tunnels, Aberdeen (28 Jan). Finally, keep your eyes peeled for show announcements celebrating Independent Venue Week, which this year takes place from 30 January. [Tallah Brash]

Film

What better way to spend the new year than by slipping down a rabbit hole of cinema with We’re Not in Kansas Anymore, Glasgow Film Theatre’s retrospective exploring the intersection between the nightmarish cinema of David Lynch and Victor Fleming’s The Wizard of Oz. The occasion for this wonderful film season (which runs until 10 Jan) is the release of Alexandre O. Philippe’s documentary Lynch/Oz, which examines the connective tissue between Lynch’s work and that 1939 Technicolor fantasy classic.

Or how about a couple of grimy 80s flicks screening on 35mm?

Celluloid-nut Matt Palmer (he of All Night Horror Madness) has programmed

Photo: Yoshino Shigihara

Photo: Ajamu X

Photo: Adam Whitmore

Rozi Plain

Big Joanie

The Bug Club

the tech-noir masterpiece The Terminator in a curious double-bill with Road House, that really good bad movie from 1989 in which Patrick Swayze plays Dalton, a zen bouncer with a masters in philosophy and a penchant for throat-ripping. Both are screening in 35mm and it’s fair to say you won’t see these two films paired together anywhere else any time soon (Cameo, Edinburgh, 13 Jan).

We get the feeling Dalton would be a fan of Koyaanisqatsi, Godfrey Re io’s trippy, sorrowful vision of our hyper-connected consumeristic world from 1982 that looks simultaneously prescient (from a 2023 lens) and dated (given how often Re io’s time-lapse images have been ripped off over the years). It’s screening at DCA on 18 January as part of exhibition Plastic: Remaking Our World.

Also at DCA, there’s a screening of the underseen Studio Ghibli film Only Yesterday (23 Jan). Chosen by artist Matthew Arthur Williams ahead of his DCA exhibition Soon Come, this is a rare chance to see a hidden gem of Ghibli’s colossal back catalogue. It’s one of their more low-key works, concerned with everyday observations of Japanese life rather than the fantasy and magic of other Ghibli films, but it’s no less great for that.

And finally, be sure to make it along to Cameo’s screening of Enys Men (11 Jan), Mark Jenkin’s followup to the brilliant Bait from 2019. Jenkin will be in Edinburgh for a Q&A following the film, and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more passionate filmmaker. He’s sure to have tonnes to say about the film’s tactile 16mm cinematography and its place in Cornish folk horror tradition.

[Jamie Dunn]

Clubs

Stereo has a monster lineup with Aquarian, DJ Amtrak and Bake on 13 January. One for break and deconstructed club lovers.

The same weekend sees another busy one for Sneaky Pete’s in Edinburgh. HOT MESS, Edinburgh’s longest running queer party, has resident Simonotron all night (13 Jan), while Redstone Press return with Lewis Lowe all night on the 14th; big bass, UK club bangers are to be expected.

The 20 January brings BALLADS: a new night at The Poetry Club with SILKARMOUR, COMFORT. The purpose of this night is to combine live experimental gigs of goth and punk with DJs. Nearby on the same night, RARE Club presents Tommy Holohan at SWG3, a big night for fans of trance and techno.

EPiKA return to Sneaky Pete’s in Edinburgh with a lot of snares & claps, support from Penstkart and ona:v (23 Jan) – this is one of the few nights in Edinburgh specialising in electro.

Over at Audio in Glasgow, Event Research Programme (ERP) invites Josey Rebelle, support from DJ Peg, Jemima (DJ), Brunnera (Live) and Boosterhooch (DJ), huge bookings from the patron pledge sustainable night (27 Jan)(27 Jan), while the following night Erol Alkan is at The Berkeley Suite all night long.

On the same night in Edinburgh, DJ Heartstring have their first Scottish appearance at The Bongo Club. The German duo’s sound is fast becoming a combination of euphoric lyrics and down-tempo techno – this night will have something for everyone.

Finally, on 29 January at The Berkeley Suite, Missing Persons Club have some VERY special guests – keep an eye on this. [Heléna Stanton]

Art

At DCA, Matthew Arthur Williams’ first major UK solo exhibition continues until 26 March. Titled Soon Come, the exhibition explores family, memory and representation, bringing together seemingly disparate geographies through photography and a newly commissioned sound and video work.

The Museum of Edinburgh, in collaboration with the Edinburgh Caribbean Association, presents Respect! Caribbean Life in Edinburgh, which explores the cultures of Caribbean Scottish people through museum objects, poetry, music and film. The exhibition continues until 19 February.

Also in Edinburgh, The Society of Scottish Artists presents a special rendition of its annual exhibition, celebrating 130 years of the organisation’s founding. The show explores the organisation’s history as well as showcasing a selection of nationally important works alongside installations, performances and moving image works. The exhibition takes place in the Upper Galleries of the Royal Scottish Academy until 10 January.

At Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow, The Love of Print (until 12 Mar) celebrates 50 years of the Glasgow Print Studio, with over 225 works by over 130 artists, including new commissions by artists currently working in the print studio. Also in Glasgow, Conditions of Carriage takes place in GSA’s Reid Gallery’s Ground Floor space until 21 January. Curated by

Blue Velvet

Josey Rebelle

Photo: Sami Janjer

Erol Alkan

Soon Come, Matthew Arthur Williams

Photo: Tom Madwell

Image: courtesy of Ruth Clark

Aquarian

courtesy Aquarian

Council Baby and Robert McCormack, the exhibition documents two experimental drawings led by the two artists that took place on Glasgow’s subway trains as part of Close of Play: Climate Emergency and Creative Action in 2022. Meanwhile, at The Modern Institute, a new solo exhibition by Tony Swain brings together a dynamic and multidisciplinary range of dramatic works on paper that combine collage, painting and textiles. [Harvey Dimond]

Theatre

Scottish theatre is relatively quiet in January, with most theatres finishing out their holiday runs before taking a break. However, there is still plenty to see this month, from old favourites to new experiments.

After a sell-out tour in 2019, Scottish Ballet is bringing its stunning adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen back to Scotland. This production is choreographed by Christopher Hampson and designed by Lez Brotherston, and promises a heartwarming story for all ages. (Glasgow until 8 Jan, Aberdeen 18-21 Jan, Inverness 25-28 Jan).

Capital Theatres and Barrowland Ballet are bringing more familyfriendly dance to the stage with The Unexpected Gift. This dance-theatre performance is interactive and inclusive, and it is made especially for and with children ages seven to 14 with complex needs such as autism. The Unexpected Gift explores play, curiosity, and the extraordinary potential of everyday objects (13 Jan).

This month, Traverse Theatre is offering Tam O’Shanter, Tales & Whisky in conjunction with Stolen Elephant Theatre. The show is a comic celebration of the poetry of Robert Burns, and audience members have the option to buy a dram of whisky with their ticket. Expect laughs, shivers, and great performances (25 Jan).

For just one day this month, Platform in Glasgow is putting up the unique and exciting Bus Regulation: The Musical, which melds nostalgic musical theatre, public transit, and roller derby to examine the history of public transit provision in the Strathclyde region (28 Jan).

For those looking to stay in this month, Pitlochry Festival Theatre is hosting a special podcast series called Blaccine: First Dose. The podcast chronicles urgent conversations about vaccine uptake in the Black British community during COVID-19. The collection consists of three monologues, followed by a post-show discussion with the writers (12 Jan, 19 Jan and 26 Jan). [Rho Chung]

Books

If you want to broaden your literary horizons, then there’s a whole host of new voices to discover this January. Helensburgh’s Cailean Steed is launching their debut Home, a cult-heavy thriller, in conversation with Kirstin Innes at Scotland’s largest book shop – Waterstones Sauchiehall Street – on 17 January. The same venue will see another debut launch one week later, when Edinburgh-based Hannah Kaner introduces us to her fantasy novel, Godkiller (24 Jan).

Those in Glasgow, stick around that Waterstones for a more unusual offering – The Red Scholar’s Wake, by Aliette de Bodard, a Vietnameseinspired, sci-fi romance space opera (23 Jan) – and let disciplines collide at the Waterstones on Argyle Street as Philip Kerr’s Diving into Heavy Metal, a journey through the writer’s life and love for the genre (31 Jan).

With the new year comes new resolutions – if yours is to disrupt, then head to Lighthouse Books in Edinburgh on 13 January for the launch of Scott Branson’s Practical Anarchism, and gain tips on how to sustain social revolution in your day-to-day life. Portobello Bookshop has some great gems too – Kirsty Logan will be launching her new novel Now She Is Witch, in conversation with the wonderful Heather Parry (12 Jan), and poetry legend Don Paterson will celebrate the release of his long-awaited memoir Toy Fights: A Boyhood on 19 January.

It’s poets galore at the Scottish Poetry Library on the same date, as the city Makars of Scotland perform live together for the first time –Hannah Lavery, Laura T Fyfe, Jim Carruth, WM (Bill) Herbert and Niall O’Gallagher

Of course, no Scottish books column would be complete without an obligatory nod to the Baird. Those after an authentic Burns Night celebration can head to Irvine (25 Jan) where Simon Lamb, the Scriever at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum will be hosting proceedings. Doesn’t get more Rabbie than that. [Nasim Rebecca Asl]

Blaccine First Dose by Stockroom

The Gift by Barrowland Ballet

Calculated Risk Ciara Phillips

Image: courtesy the artist and Glasgow Print Studio

Photo: Nigel R Glasgow

Photo: Paul Campbell

Image: courtesy of Vintage

Hannah Lavery

Photo: Hannah Mirsepasi

The Snow Queen

Photo: Andy Ross

New and Improved

At the start of a new year, we look ahead at the top new places to go and experience in Edinburgh in 2023

Words by: The Skinny

New trails to explore

Of course, ‘new’ is all relative, and Edinburgh has such a vivid and varied history that a little digging is bound to o er up something that’s new to you. Take as an example the all-new Forth Bridges Trail. It’s a new ve-mile walking trail around North and South Queensferry, taking in more than a dozen historic locations associated with the UNESCO heritage site, including the Hawes Inn (as immortalised by Robert Louis Stevenson in Kidnapped) and the jetty used by Queen Margaret to cross the Forth in the 11th century.

The Forth Bridge is also one of the key points on Scotland’s UNESCO Trail. Launched in 2022, it’s the rst of its kind in the world, tying together each of Scotland’s 13 designations and historic sites. The Old and New Towns join the Forth Bridge and the nearby start of Roman forti cation The Antonine Wall on the list, with the capital’s designation as a UNESCO City of Literature also highlighted.

For more ideas on getting out and about in Edinburgh visit edinburgh.org/discover/edinburgh-outdoors/outdoors

New avours to savour

Edinburgh’s food and drink scene is constantly evolving, and that makes for a whole host of new places to check out. On Leith Walk, Antonietta is a new-look Italian restaurant from the Vittoria Group, with bright and colourful decor sure to stand out on your friends’ Instagram feeds. Morningside is home to literary icons Miss Jean Brodie and Maisie the Cat, so it’s a tting location for Pudding and Stories, a new bookshop and cafe that opened its doors at the end of 2022. Another new spot to check out is South Queensferry gastropub Thirty Knots – it’s in the shadow of iconic location, the Forth Bridge. There’s also a host of new venues to check out within the St James Quarter. Duck and Waffle have built a worldwide reputation for their cocktails and all-day-and-all-night breakfast service, and EL&N pair an extensive drinks list with some full-on, all-pink decor. The Botanist will bring their combination of botanical-themed interiors and quirky cocktails to The Quarter in mid-2023, and watch this space for details on the Edinburgh Seafood Festival which returns in March. For more ideas on things to see and do in Edinburgh visit edinburgh.org/things-to-do/food-and-drink/

New places to stay

Edinburgh is going through something of a hotel boom, with unique new uses found for some of the city’s most exciting architecture. Opening its doors this spring, 100 Princes Street (formerly the clubhouse of the Royal Overseas Legion) will be the rst Scottish hotel from the Red Carnation Hotel Collection. Having started out as a hotel in the 1800s, the hotel will feature a hand-painted mural in its central staircase.

In Haymarket, the Hoxton hotel group will open their rst Edinburgh hotel among the Georgian townhouses of Grosvenor Street. The high-end hotel will also o er a trio of serviced apartments if you’re planning an extended stay in Edinburgh. It’s a similar story at Roomzzz’s new aparthotel at the St James Quarter – it will o er 74 serviced apartments in the heart of the city when it opens in spring. The W Hotel will also join The Quarter in winter 2023, promising a rooftop bar and 360-degree views across the city. For more ideas on where to stay in Edinburgh visit edinburgh.org/accommodation

Art, history and live music

January isn’t the sunniest month, but the weather does bring a very special Edinburgh tradition with it. In 1901, a set of 38 watercolours by Turner were donated to the National Galleries of Scotland with one key condition – they can only be displayed in the month of January. Turner in January at the Royal Scottish Academy on the Mound is a great chance to see a collection of works by one of Britain’s greatest painters. In April, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art hosts a major exhibition by Alberta Whittle – the Barbadian-Scottish artist’s work is fresh from the Scottish Pavilion at the Venice Biennale. Both the Modern and RSA have step-free access to their exhibitions, which are also both free of charge.

Looking further ahead, The National Museum of Scotland also o ers a unique chance to view a piece of Scottish history. The Declaration of Arbroath, a 700-year-old document asking Pope John XXII to recognise Scotland’s independence, goes on display from 3 June.

There is also plenty of live music to look forward to in 2023. An early highlight sees The Twilight Sad playing a unique, stripped-back set at the historic Assembly Rooms this month as part of the Burns and Beyond festival.

Elsewhere, Martha Wainwright plays the 99-year-old Usher Hall, and The Queen’s Hall in Newington celebrating its 200th anniversary in 2023. Catch Joesef and Self Esteem at the venue this March.

Find out more about Edinburgh’s music scene, including upcoming festivals and bars playing live music at edinburgh.org/things-to-do/live-music-in-edinburgh

For further inspiration on what to see and do in 2023 in Edinburgh, visit Forever Edinburgh - the official guide to the city edinburgh.org/blog

Photo: Forever Edinburgh

Edinburgh Skyline

Features

20 The Sound of 2023: a rundown of the music we’re most excited about in the coming year.

23 SAY Award-winning jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie reflects on an incredible year and lets us in on his plans for 2023.

24 Kirsty Logan on her latest queer witchy novel Now She Is Witch

26 We talk to Glasgow’s rising star TAAHLIAH ahead of her live show at SWG3.

27 Rachel Maclean on her arresting installation, Mimi, in a disused shopfront on Perth High Street.

28 The Skinny 200th Issue Party in pictures!

30 Mark Jenkin on Enys Men, commitment to 16mm film and Cornish culture.

32 Laura Poitras on her Nan Goldin documentary All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

33 Tonderai Munyevu on his piece in Blaccine: First Dose exploring vaccine hesitancy and Black Britishness.

34 Fucked Up’s Mike Haliechuk on going back to basics to record an album in one day.

35 We meet the four textile designers selected to show with Craft Scotland at this year’s Collect showcase in London.

36 We talk to the Instagram account documenting the radical stickers of Glasgow’s Southside.

On the website... A look at the best TV shows of 2022 , our writers’ ballots from our films of 2022 and books of 2022 polls, plus more album, book and film reviews and a year-end special from our film podcast, The Cineskinny

New Beginnings

It’s a new year! 2023! Things are less cancelled than they were a year ago! In cautious anticipation of a year of live stuff happening, we look forward to the months ahead in Scottish arts.

We’ve got a guide to the ones to watch in music in 2023, with a look back on the Scottish success stories of 2022 and a look forward to some of the artists you’re going to be listening to this year. We meet SAY Award-winning jazz pianist Fergus

McCreadie ahead of his Celtic Connections date, and talk to Glasgow’s TAAHLIAH – BBC Introducing’s Dance Artist of the Year 2022 – about her upcoming live show, The Ultimate Angels Art takes a trip to Perth to see how Rachel Maclean’s Jupiter Artland installation is disrupting the high street, and we meet author Kirsty Logan to discuss her queer, witchy new novel Now She Is Witch

The Sound of 2023

Words: Tallah Brash

Last year was undeniably a great year for Scottish music. After taking the top spot in our 2021 Scottish Albums of the Year list, Hamish Hawk went on to to be shortlisted for the 2022 Scottish Album of the Year Award and he’s got a new album – Angel Numbers – due on 3 February. AiiTee and BEMZ received another nod from The SAY Award last year too, with BEMZ going on to receive wider recognition in the wider UK music scene with a win for best Breakthrough Vocalist/MC in the end of year 2022 DJ Mag Awards.

Rebecca Vasmant received her first nomination for a SAY Award with her debut album With Love, from Glasgow and Fergus McCreadie helped put Scottish jazz on the map with a SAY Award win and a Mercury Prize nomination. TAAHLIAH’s

Angelica won in the Best Independent EP/Mixtape category at the 2022 AIM Awards, and Kapil Seshasayee continued to dazzle with his politically charged, Bollywood-inspired album Laal, sure to be a contender for the 2023 SAY Award.

Other artists continued to excel throughout 2022, with the likes of Lizzie Reid, SHEARS, Billy Got Waves, Russell Stewart, Theo Bleak, AMUNDA, Medicine Cabinet and Echo Machine seeming to go from strength to strength, with the latter pair heading out on massive tours supporting Franz Ferdinand and Placebo respectively.

We’ve no doubt that all of these artists will continue to grow in 2023, but here we want to shine a spotlight on some other (mostly new) talent worth keeping your eyes and ears peeled for this year.

Berta Kennedy

Last October, Greenock’s Berta Kennedy was crowned the Sound of Young Scotland at the 2022 Scottish Album of the Year Award. The producer and singer-songwriter combines alt-pop and R’n’B to create something that sounds truly exciting. Her new EP is due this spring. instagram.com/bertakennedy

Carsick Charlie

We were fortunate enough to get a sneaky first listen to the debut single, Finn (due 2 Jan), from the indie-folk project of Joseph Innes in December. Featuring sublime vocals from Bailey Greig, we are obsessed. Innes already has a stack of shows lined up this winter, as he heads out on tour across Europe with American outfit Florist. instagram.com/charlietheeban

We reflect on 2022’s Scottish musical successes and shine a spotlight on some of the musicians we’re excited about in 2023

Photo: Megan Henderson

Photo: Honey Welch

Berta Kennedy

Carsick Charlie

Casual Worker

Influenced by the cold wave bands of the 80s, Glasgow’s Eve King and Hamish Wickham released their debut EP (Mousetrap) as Casual Worker in September 2022. Their warm and fuzzy electronics paired with King’s sublime vocals are simply outstanding. Their next EP is planned for February. instagram.com/_casualworker

naafi

Originally from Fife, naafi wrote some of TAAHLIAH’s awardwinning Angelica EP, even providing vocals for the euphoric Brave; she also produced The Healer from Alliyah Enyo’s (also one to watch tbh) 2022 Echo’s Disintegration album. naafi has new mixes and original music planned for 2023, and what we’ve heard so far is stunning. instagram.com/naafi_________

Humour

Formed during one of the many lockdowns of the past few years, Glasgow’s Humour are flatmates Andreas Christodoulidis, Jack Lyall, Ross Patrizio, Lewis Doig and Ruairidh Smith. They released their unhinged yet captivating post-punk debut EP, pure misery, at the end of November. instagram.com/humour_music

No Windows

The keen-eared among you may have caught this teen duo at Connect festival last August, or maybe at their sold-out headline show at Sneaky’s in December. Consisting of high school pals Morgan Morris and Verity Sangen, their shoegaze-indebted debut EP Fishboy is just the beginning. instagram.com/nowindowsmusic

KLEO

KLEO has been on our radar for a wee while now, but 2022 saw her step into the spotlight with a nomination for the Sound of Young Scotland at The SAY Award. With an epic new single at the end of 2022 from this half girl/half android singer-songwriter and producer, KLEO is one to watch for 2023. instagram.com/kleoisonline

Psweatpants

Inspired by artists like Skepta, AJ Tracey and Vince Staples, rapper Psweatpants received nominations for Best Hip Hop artist at the 2022 SAMAs as well as a nomination for the Sound of Young Scotland at The SAY Award. Following a smattering of singles in 2022, and a support slot with BEMZ, Psweatpants is excited for 2023, as are we. instagram.com/_psweatpants_

Photo: Tammy Dyson

Photo: Adam Stent @saltyclam

Casual Worker

Photo: Craig R McIntosh

Photo: Nate Cleary Photography

Photo: Ellen Jennifer @mac_eyee

Photo: RoryBarnes

Humour KLEO Psweatpants

No Windows

Music

Queen of Harps

Scottish/Malaysian-Chinese rapper and harpist Anise Pearson, aka Queen of Harps, is doing something wholly unique on the Scottish music scene, creating a genre she calls ‘hip-hop-harp’. Following a well-received headline performance for AMPLIFI in December, Pearson plans to release her debut EP in 2023. instagram.com/23queenofharps

Sean Focus

Originally from Zimbabwe, Edinburgh-based Afrocentric artist Sean Focus has been putting out music for some time, and last summer was spotlighting others with his GRDN Sessions series. At the end of last year Focus headlined The Caves, released his bouncy album, A Good Time. A Great Time, and released a collaborative single with BEMZ, the mighty Raging Bull. instagram.com/seanfocus

Redolent

Redolent are hardly new kids on the block, but developments in 2022 saw the band grow to a five-piece, develop their own midi night (we should catch up if ur around) and sign to Columbia Records. So far, they’ve plans in 2023 for appearances at SXSW and The Great Escape, with a new EP due soon. instagram.com/redolentredolent

Terra Kin

Glasgow 23-year-old Terra Kin released their debut single, Flames, in October last year, followed swiftly by their debut EP, Too Far Gone. The record combines very humble and spacious compositions with a rich alt-jazz vocal that oozes with warmth and maturity. instagram.com/terra__kin

Rosé Chrissy

Rosé Chrissy is Glasgow’s answer to Cardi B. Having played her first Edinburgh show as part of AMPLIFI back in October, Chrissy has so far only released two singles, with her latest (Savage) being an absolute banger and full of ‘hot girl shit’ energy. We’re excited to see how she grows in 2023. instagram.com/msrosechrissy

Uninvited

Uninvited are Taylor-Ray Dillon, Gillian Dhlakama, Bex Young and Fiorenza Cocozza. Together, the four make infectious grunge-indebted pop-punk, and with both a SAMAs and Sound of Young Scotland nomination under their belt, the band have plans for a new EP in 2023 and are heading out on tour with Nova Twins. instagram.com/officialuninvited

Photo: Zindzi Hudson

Photo: Rod Penn

Queen of Harps

Sean Focus

Photo: Rory Barnes

Photo: Rosé Chrissy

Photo: Sam Nahirny

Photo: Kai Gillespie

Redolent

Ros é Chrissy Uninvited

Terra Kin

Keep the Momentum

For Fergus McCreadie, sitting at the piano at the Hammersmith Apollo, getting ready to play a track from his third album Forest Floor at the Mercury Prize Awards ceremony was, understandably, a surreal experience. Settling their nerves, he and his two bandmates David Bowden and Stephen Henderson launched into a beautifully expressive performance of The Unfurrowed Field in front of a glittering cohort of contemporaries, a moment of arrival and recognition that McCreadie more than deserved.

“It was a funny one – as a jazz musician, you’re not really used to running in those kinds of circles,” McCreadie says. “That mainstream way of being, it is unusual. It was interesting to see that world, for one night.”

Little Simz may have gone on to take the prize that night, but it could be argued that nobody benefited more from the exposure than McCreadie. The jazz composer, originally from Clackmannanshire, has quietly been amassing a cult following in the close-knit world of Scottish jazz since his debut record Turas in 2018. With Forest Floor, an album he wrote when he retreated to his home county during lockdown, his fascination with the natural, ru ed beauty of the land of his youth blooms into his music, as tracks blossom and wilt, churning and convulsing with the changing of the seasons.

In addition to the Mercury nod, Forest Floor also recently won the Scottish Album of the Year Award, capping off a remarkable 2022. “This has been a really big year,” he says, reflecting on the success. “Now there is a pressure to not lose that momentum. You don’t want to get too imposter syndrome-y with yourself, and you don’t want to let your foot off the gas too much either. I’m just trying to not think too much and just keep going.”

McCreadie means it, too. As soon as 2023 begins, he intends to begin recording the follow-up to Forest Floor, with the expectation of a release in early 2024. “I think it will be a little different to the last two,” he says about the new material. “It might be a little more folky, I’m trying to experiment with the structures a little bit. In jazz, we can be reliant on a certain way of structuring things – we have the tune, then we improvise, then we go back to the tune. But there are a couple of new tunes that are very through-composed, and there are some that don’t have any improvising at all. I’m just trying to find new ways to make the folk-jazz connection interesting.”

Folk music is intrinsic to McCreadie’s work. It can be heard in the yearning melodies of The Unfurrowed Field and Morning Moon, tracks that pull at that aching power of traditional song,

drawing from a history that has a longer lens than human memory allows for. McCreadie, like so many people in Scotland, grew up immersed in local folk music and the older he gets, the more drawn he is to it. “It makes me feel very Scottish when I hear Scottish music, and I really like that sensation. That romantic image of lots of people playing the same tune in pubs, that does happen, it is a real thing. It’s a big part of the identity.”

It’s the same passion for Scottish folk tradition that drives Celtic Connections, the festival that McCreadie is appearing at this month, where he’ll be playing a piece he’s written for string quartet and piano on a bill he’s sharing with Scottish harpist Maeve Gilchrist. Celtic Connections has been a presence in McCreadie’s life since he was a child, and he has particularly fond memories for the Festival Club weekend afterparties, where assorted groups of musicians engage in spontaneous, improvised late-night jam sessions.

One glance at the 2023 Celtic Connections programme tells you that Scottish traditional music is booming, and McCreadie himself points to Glaswegian saxophonist Matt Carmichael, corto.alto trombonist Liam Shortall and Shetland saxophonist Norman Willmore as budding jazz artists to keep tabs on as 2023 lurches into view.

As for McCreadie himself, the early months of the new year will be taken up by his bi est ever headline tour. By the very nature of the music he makes, shows differ wildly from night to night. “If people go to the gigs expecting to hear it exactly how it sounds on the album, they will be surprised, I think,” he says. “Sometimes a set can be entirely improvised, it just depends on the night, the audience, the room, the piano and how we’re feeling.”

If 2022 was a breakthrough year for McCreadie, then it’s hard to predict what 2023 will look like for him as a consequence. Whichever route it takes, though, he is ready. “I don’t think it’s affected much in terms of the music; I’m still going in the same direction that I would be anyway,” he says. “You’re just trying not to think about it too much and not let the pressure get to you. You just keep going and use the momentum hopefully to

keep going for bi er things. I’m not sure what’s bi er than the Mercury Prize at this point, but we’ll see what happens.”

Fergus McCreadie plays Celtic Connections, The Mackintosh Church, Glasgow, 20 Jan; St Luke’s, Glasgow, 2 Mar; Fruitmarket, Edinburgh, 10 Mar

fergusmccreadie.co.uk

Ahead of his appearance at Celtic Connections, SAY Award-winning jazz pianist Fergus McCreadie reflects on an incredible year and lets us in on his plans for 2023

Interview: Max Pilley

“It makes me feel very Scottish when I hear Scottish music, and I really like that sensation”

Fergus McCreadie

Photo: Dave Stapleton

Witching Hour

Kirsty Logan, the acclaimed author of the likes of The Gracekeepers, The Gloaming, and Things We Say in the Dark, has been brewing on her most recent novel for years. The result, out this month, is the latest in Logan’s landmark Gothic, twisted takes on fairytales and fantasy, following two young women – the witchy Lux and rage-driven Else – who, with nothing left to lose after immeasurable hurt, set out to take their revenge together. Appropriately for the kind of dark, folkloric storytelling that long ago put Logan on the Scottish literary map, the inspiration grew from a question that had been haunting her for a long time: “I was brought to writing about witches by the idea of the ‘perfect victim’,” Logan explains. “For a long time, witches were thought of as evil creatures who made pacts with the devil and ate babies. Then they were reclaimed and cast as innocent healers and midwives who never did anything wrong. But I wanted to ask: why do they have to be wholly innocent or wholly evil? Does it have to be as simple as villain or victim? Witches show us that the world is more complicated (and indeed more beautiful) than a simple binary.”

The novel is set in the Middle Ages, an era to which Logan was deeply drawn, fascinated by the “disconnect between the solid reality of [people’s] daily lives and the fantastical tales they heard.” While she isn’t a historian, Now She Is Witch is a meticulously researched piece of fantasy, emerging from “entire notebooks full of weird, gory, beautiful, fantastical details,” Logan explains. The novel’s past setting was also an opportunity to explore the gendered power dynamics of witchcraft and obligatory femininity that Lux experiences, and to throw into relief the ways in which certain things haven’t changed. “One of the ways that Lux is an outsider is that she doesn’t get her period, so isn’t able to get pregnant,” Logan explains. “On one hand, this makes her safer in this world, as maternal mortality was very high. But it also marks her out as suspicious, as being a wife and mother was one of the few paths available to women.”

Now She Is Witch is rich with gendered symbolism, particularly through the figures of the wolf and the rabbit, that reoccur throughout. The wolf is implicitly masculine and considered a perfect warrior in Celtic mythology, one who leads and hunts and the “bringer of death, eternally hungry,” Logan says; the rabbit on the other hand represents the feminine, a symbol of fertility and abundance. Logan brings up the phrase “elle a vu de loup”, or “she’s seen the wolf,” French slang for

having sex for the first time, and the Latin “lupa” meaning both whore and female wolf. For Logan, “the novel is very much a story about desire, as well as about violence, hunger, superstition and light – the wolf is the perfect figure.” The wolf is also connected in fairytales, particularly in Little Red Riding Hood, as a symbol of sexual threat. In Now She Is a Witch, Logan delves into the duality of the predator wolf and prey rabbit, and how certain characters reverse their roles. However, she is also keen to point out the cyclical nature of the hunt and the moral quandary it poses. “The simplest way to gain power,” Logan says, “is to victimise someone more powerless than yourself.”

In Now She Is Witch, several characters have chosen their own names, a narrative choice that for Logan was an act of redefining. “One of the things I wanted to explore in the book is the power of naming, choosing and defining ourselves,” Logan explains. “If we don’t define who we are, then others will do it for us.” For Else, whose given name the reader never learns, this redefinition comes from a “series of changes she goes through; she feels that she has become ‘something else’.”

There is a latent queerness to this kind of redefinition that Now She Is Witch, leans into:

exploring the inarticulability of queer identity at a time when it could not be named. Writing a historical fiction book as a contemporary author, Logan explains, can be a tricky balancing act. “[It was] a challenge to figure out how to convey a historically-accurate queer identity to a modern audience,” she says, “though I thought it was important to try.” The novel features a non-binary character, Ash, although they don’t use this term, which works to further destabilise the notion of the binary that is at the centre of the book. “Queer people have existed throughout history,” Logan adds, “and to pretend otherwise is naïve at best and dangerous at worst.”

This is ultimately what Logan hopes readers will take away from Now She Is Witch: that the world is more complicated and beautiful than a simple binary. “Throughout history people have been scapegoated and deemed the Other, and we see that just as much now as ever,” Logan says. “But it’s never as simple as Us and Them, and if someone is trying to tell us that it is that simple, we should question why.”

Now She Is Witch is out on 12 Jan via Vintage

Kirsty Logan, the acclaimed author of The Gracekeepers and The Gloaming, tells us about her queer, witchy new novel

Interview: Katalina Watt

Kirsty Logan

Photo: Simone Falk

Heaven Sent

Heléna Stanton

It’s rare to find an artist who so deeply cares about their practice. Journalists and punters can become complacent, consigning electronic music to the milieus of base hedonism, forgetting its artistic heritage. TAAHLIAH’s music is genre-less; her ability to manipulate music anywhere between club bangers and slow emotive pieces of sound is arguably beyond futuristic.

TAAHLIAH says: “I’ve been studying a lot of music theory; I have a deep thirst to understand music. I’ve always been an artist – my practice has just changed. I used painting to express and confront feelings that I found difficult, and once I had confronted those feelings, I didn’t really feel the need to paint anymore. Which gave me this freedom I suppose to be like right okay, now what can I do?”

For TAAHLIAH The Ultimate Angels has been an idea since her time at the Glasgow School of Art. The night’s name is an homage to Byron Newman’s 1984 book, a photo exploration of trans women working in the Parisian sex industry. She explains how the night is more than just a live performance: her work continuously comes back to angels as a motif. “I don’t necessarily consider anything I’ve done to be separate from what I’ve done before. Perhaps my work goes down a different avenue or perhaps it’s more elevated, it all follows a narrative. And, with this being the first proper live show, I knew I wanted to do something memorable.”

It’s evident while chatting with TAAHLIAH that she has a strong affinity for Glasgow and its subcultures. The Ultimate Angels gives TAAHLIAH an opportunity to create something that encapsulates her work and puts it in a live setting, but also uniquely curated into a wider experience. “I was of course going to do this in Glasgow, I feel comfortable here, my pals are here, it would have been a disservice to everyone not doing it in Glasgow. I always want to work with people I admire, hence why I invited BABYNYMPH and Miss Cabbage. They’re unapologetically themselves, which is

something that everyone should be. I connect with them both in that way, musically. I hope that [The Ultimate Angels] is something that people will remember. I’m not doing it for money, it’s to offer another experience. I want it to be as elevated as it can be.”

The three remixes TAAHLIAH released in 2022 showcase her uniqueness in stamping her sound onto other projects. She tells how it’s difficult to place her music in a genre; a question often put to her. But through her recent refinement and agency in collaborating with other artists, she describes how she’s changed since Angelica’s

2021 release. “I hardly listen to electronic music at all anymore. A lot of the music I listen to is slow emotional pop. So, I feel like I’ve entered a bit of a difference space. My music is less abrasive and a lot more ethereal. I make music with so much variation. I go through phases of wanting to make loads of emotional music, but then I’ll have things that are a lot faster – periods of exhilaration and excitement.”

After experiencing so much support for not only her music, but her notoriously energetic DJ sets, TAAHLIAH describes her relationship writing music and preforming. “My DJ sets feel quite separate [from my music] – I’m not going to start playing piano ballads in the middle of Warehouse Project, for example. That’s why there’s a difference between a TAAHLIAH DJ set and a TAAHLIAH live set. DJ sets are exhilaration, they’re like a tension, a way for me to expel something. Writing and making music is a way for me to nurture something. I’ve always loved hard music and its sonic aesthetics. But I’m glad that it feels like I have two outlets, that if I didn’t have one or the other, I’d be stru ling artistically.”

Following an adrenalinecharged 2022 full of performing and award winning, TAAHLIAH reflects on what 2023 may look like for her. “2022 was always meant to be about live performing and getting out there and I’ve done that; and I will continue to do so. But there’s going to be a bi er emphasis on being in the studio, exploring a soundscape that I’ve never really experienced before – I’m excited to write music.”

Glasgow’s TAAHLIAH, BBC Introducing Dance Artist of the Year 2022, shows no signs of slowing down. We chat to her ahead of her first live show, The Ultimate Angels, at SWG3: an artistic homecoming for the rising star

Interview:

TAAHLIAH’s The Ultimate Angels with support from Miss Cabbage and BABYNYMPH, SWG3, Glasgow, 18 Feb

You can also see TAAHLIAH playing with the London Contemporary Orchestra at Southbank Centre, London, 1 Feb

Photo: Kyle Crooks

Shop of Horrors

Interview: Rachel Ashenden

If you go down to Perth High Street today, you’ll be in for a big surprise.

Amongst a string of shops, most of which sell products that capitalise on physical insecurities, meet Mimi – a character with such a suffocating, insufferable presence that she demands a shop-sized eponymous installation. Appearing in multiple, Mimi is both the star of an animated short film and also realised in a doll-like sculpture which represents her alternating personae. Intent on inverting the consumer experience, Mimi’s creator is Rachel Maclean, the Scottish multimedia artist based in Glasgow.

Mimi was originally conceived in 2021 as a permanent commission at Jupiter Artland, outside Edinburgh. Imitating Hansel and Gretel’s demise, visitors are led down a wooded path with heartshaped paving stones akin to sweets in Grimm’s fairytale. At the end of the path is a candy pink toyshop, filled with doll sculptures packaged and shelved like products. Much of the aesthetic is inspired by social media emojis which, in this context, are symbols of disillusionment and superficiality. Mimi’s two selves are represented in the sculptures: her attractive exterior, and her ghastly underside. Enhanced by the short film, the installation spells out the disastrous effects of Mimi’s obsession with constructing her self-image under late-stage capitalism.

There are no sweets or paving stones leading you to No. 139 Perth High Street, but you’ll be lured in by its glimmering illusion. From a distance, it’s a deteriorating shop, fallen into disuse due to years of austerity. At second glance, it’s a toyshop

with a horrible twist. There is no point resisting; enter the topsy-turvy world of Maclean, where cutting satire is the order of the day.

When creating the permanent installation at Jupiter Artland, Maclean tells me that she was “inspired by the idea” that Mimi would one day be presented on a high street. For a while, she grappled with the challenge of translating its original shop-like iteration situated in a sculpture park to an actual shop space on an actual high street. While Jupiter Artland visitors can expect encounters with strange artworks, passers-by on Perth High Street might not expect strange encounters with artworks.

For Maclean, there is a radical difference between entering a gallery space and stumbling across Mimi in Perth. While in a gallery “[there’s] the wall text and a kind of conceit that’s telling you what you’re about to see and why it’s important,” Mimi in Perth strips that back and “shows people art before they even know they’ve seen art.” During the installation period, a mysterious hoarding covered the shop front. When it was removed, Maclean’s team were exposed to the public’s questions. The most common question was “What is it?” which, she says, “was what I was going for.” Maclean adds: “that’s quite a different thing from being told something is art and you need to engage with it like it’s art.”

There are practical and political advantages to staging Mimi in a high street shop, too. Beside the dysfunctional till there is a door with a sign that reads ‘adults only’ leading to a “secret backstage”. Inside, the dark film is presented on a giant iPhone in a closet-sized room which imitates a dank staff

room. While Maclean didn’t want families with young children to unknowingly stumble across the film, this new staging of Mimi also allowed the artist to further realise her vision for toppling “the experience of consumer capitalism” in which “the customer is always right.” Windowless and neglected, the secret backstage is starkly and disconcertingly inharmonious to the polished shop front.

Inside Maclean’s installation, the customer is never right. Upside-down signs read ‘NOTHING MUST GO’ as the dolls lined up on the shelves are not to be bought or even handled – they are sculptures, not merchandise. After watching the film, I don’t want one anyway. “A lot of our experiences are so banal that they don’t merit reflection,” reflects Maclean. By contrast, she hopes Mimi in Perth is an “arrestingly strange” interaction prompting the visitor to consider how very thin the “façade of care” of consumer capitalism is.

When I ask Maclean how her installation in Perth has been received by the public, she tells me there has been a “mixed bag” of reactions. “Some people love it, some people hate, which is what I expected […] I’m keen artistically that if you experience it, you at the very least don’t feel indifferent towards it,” she emphasises. Personally, I hate Mimi as a character and all she represents, but I am wholeheartedly in love with Mimi as an installation and its disruptive tactics. I am left unpicking the ways in which I attach self-worth to physical appearance and purchase power, and that’s a very hard pill to swallow.

Mimi continues at 139 Perth High Street until 28 Jan, open Tue-Sun from 11am-4pm

The Skinny speaks to Rachel Maclean about her arresting new installation on Perth’s High Street

Mimi, Rachel Maclean, 2022

Image: courtesy Jupiter Artland

Image: courtesy Jupiter Artland

Mimi, Rachel Maclean, 2022

200th Issue Party

The Skinny 200th Issue Party

Photography: Martyna Maz & Marilena Vlachopoulou

Cakes by Lovecrumbs

On 1 December, The Skinny celebrated 200 issues of the magazine with a massive party in Edinburgh’s Summerhall. Eagleeyed observers will note we had actually produced 203 issues by the time the party happened – what can we say, it’s been a busy time and we’re extremely prolific.

We worked with some incredible partners to make the event happen and we want to thank them again. Our charity partner Tiny Changes represent a cause very close to our hearts, and the generous donations of our attendees will go towards their mission to help young minds feel better. The support offered by events discovery platform Skiddle was essential to the event happening. A bespoke beer – the delicious Bicentennial Can – was produced by Barney’s Beer, and is now

available in a bottle shop near you. Lovecrumbs provided us with a frankly dazzling array of cakes, and non-alcoholic beverages were on hand thanks to Nuisance drinks. Summerhall, our former home, once again provided us with a beautiful venue and the support of their fantastic team, which was of course invaluable.

The night was programmed by Music editor Tallah, and she did a truly incredible job. We kept the acts secret until the night itself, because we enjoy a mystery and also not committing to anything too soon. BIGGEST THANK YOU to all of the performers, it was an absolute privilege to have them as part of our party. In the Dissection Room, SHEARS, Callum Easter, BEMZ, AMUNDA, with DJ sets from The Skinny DJs, aka George (who also performed his final back flip), and Arusa Qureshi.

Downstairs in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre was a chill space which featured performances from Djana Gabrielle and Lewis McLaughlin

Nested within the night was a launch event for new music zine Chün, who programmed the Gallery Bar downstairs featuring philomenah, Alliyah Enyo, Backslash After Backslash \\ and DJ Disc Jocelyne, aka Vicky Kavanagh from Bikini Body. A good time was had by all! Thank you to Creative Projects manager Tom for taking the lead, and all The Skinny staff for making it happen – everyone who pulled together to make the party a success, but also the hundreds or, at this stage, thousands who have worked to make 203 issues of the magazine. And everyone who came to celebrate with us! Your support means the world to us and made it a night to remember.

TheSkinny team

Calum Easter

AMUNDA

Alliyah Enyo and Lewis McLaughlin

Arusa Qureshi

Tiny Changes

Lady in Red

Mark Jenkin follows his grainy triumph Bait with Enys Men, a 70s-set tale of isolation

desolate Cornish island. We speak to him about shooting on 16mm film, his unnerving use of sound and making work embedded in Cornish culture

Interview: Carmen Paddock

Three years after Bait, Mark Jenkin returns with another proudly Cornish feature. Titled Enys Men, it follows a woman known only as The Volunteer (played by Mary Woodvine) as she goes about her solitary observations on an island. After its premiere in Cannes last summer, the film was quickly dubbed folk horror, but Jenkin has reservations about that very English genre. “I was worried we would be thought of as English folk horror,” he says. “It’s really important that Enys Men is a Cornish film. I wanted to make something set in an undeniably Cornish context – historically, culturally, and linguistically. I’m interested in defining identity by what we are, rather than by what we’re not.”

To Jenkin, specificity is far from limiting. “A story within a very authentic and specific setting can have a chance of being universal,” he says. “I can only do the bit of the world I have any intimacy with and understanding of, which is where I come from and where I still live. So it’s going to be Cornwall because anything else would be inauthentic.” He decided not to subtitle the May song sung in Cornish: “it isn’t narratively important to understand the language, but its presence is very important. The audience doesn’t need to know the words. The language is in the room.”

Like Bait and Jenkin’s most recent shorts, Enys Men was shot on 16mm film. The format has become his calling card and he’s not intent on

changing any time soon. “I love the camera I use. It forces me to not shoot location sound, which allows me to control the sound and sound design afterwards. It’s form determining content, but also content determining form. It’s a big, amorphous way of working.”

The vivid colours captured throughout Enys Men are ones Jenkin feels are only possible on film. “Digital is very sophisticated, but I’ve never seen filmic red done digitally. There’s something about film red that isn’t like any other red.” In Enys Men, The Volunteer’s bright red jacket is hard to look away from. “It’s sort of incongruous because red is a danger signal in nature. We’re primed for red, and when you see a true film red it’s alarming.”

The unearthly sounds of Enys Men were created by Jenkin with implements including metal reclaimed from a heritage steam railway and a tape run through two reel-to-reel machines. It’s a “hands-on analogue approach to taking clean, well-recorded sounds and making them decay,” he says. After these methods, as well as slowing and reversing noises and lines of dialogue, he works the sound to be “recognisable, but so abstracted as to become uncanny.” He finds audio a more effective way to unsettle than visuals. “If you can identify what’s wrong, you can contextualise it and live with it or correct it. But if you know something’s wrong but can’t put your finger on it, that’s a very unnerving space to be in,” he says.

These small manipulations give Jenkin room for bold cinematic choices. “I’m a proudly unsubtle filmmaker when it comes to form. When it comes to the content and the theme at the heart, that’s more ambiguous.”

This limbo is anchored by The Volunteer’s routine as she observes flowers above an abandoned mine. After the day’s work, she then codifies her leisure time in almost complete isolation. “The routine was important because there was little narrative development through dialogue,” Jenkin explains. With Enys Men delayed for a year due to the pandemic, routines became unwittingly relevant. “It was weird timing,” he says. “I wrote it ahead of the pandemic, but then routine became the heart of everybody’s life. If you were not a key worker and you were at home, routine was the thing we clung on to.”

The delay proved fruitful rather than frustrating. “Enforced distance from a film is a real privilege,” he says, noting production moves quickly and precludes reflection. But he did not discuss the film with his partner Mary Woodvine, who plays The Volunteer. “I wanted her to find that character,” he says. It seems that Woodvine’s extroversion adds “internal conflict” to his innate introversion. Jenkin realises actors’ time on set is limited, so collaboration must be opportunistic. “The actors are only involved for the intense bit of the shoot, so you can’t waste any of their input,” he says. “It’s really important not to shut down possibilities. I don’t have to put it in the edit, so I don’t have to be controlling.”

One of the most intriguing mysteries of The Volunteer’s routine is her daily dropping of a stone down a mineshaft. “A lot of people have said they’re not sure of the meaning of the stone, which I’d never thought about because it doesn’t have any meaning,” says Jenkin. “Maybe it’s a Cornish thing. There are so many mine shafts in Cornwall. Everybody I know drops stones. It’s in our culture. But once it’s in the routine, it can be subverted for the sake of the narrative.” Perhaps a flooded mine still has its secrets.

Jan by BFI

“I’m interested in defining Cornish identity by what we are, rather than by what we’re not”

Mark Jenkin

on a

Enys Men is released 13

Goldin Years

Laura Poitras’s extraordinary documentary All the Beauty and the Bloodshed explores the multifaceted life of artist

Interview: Rory Doherty

To watch All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is to witness decades of intentional, institutional harm. Laura Poitras’s documentary threads the life of underground photographer Nan Goldin through New York’s queer scene, the AIDS epidemic and a contemporary battle against big pharma’s role in the opioid crisis. “In the United States, especially, we have this sort of historical amnesia,” Poitras explains. “So it was really important that we were going to draw this connection between the AIDS crisis and the contemporary overdose crisis. Partly because Nan lived through and survived both, but also to have the immediacy around how the most vulnerable are destroyed by society.”

Immediacy is key to Poitras’s film; never has cinematic archiving felt more like an exercise in emotional extraction from not just its incredible subject but the viewer. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed drags a deep, inexpressible pain from its audience as they see the unravelling of repressed history. It’s the only way to honour Goldin’s work, Poitras believes: “Her artwork, just in general, has this kind of rawness in the work and what she speaks about, an emotional rawness that I think most people don’t share as much as she does.”

The presence of these separate (but, of course, not that separate) societal traumas still dominates the lives of so many, and All the Beauty and the Bloodshed has such a devastating impact not solely because of its limitless empathy for those who suffered. “What I don’t want is that people walk away from a film and feel like, ‘Oh, that’s all wrapped up, I’m off the hook,’” says Poitras. “I really do want the audience to be implicated in the films. I mean, it’s a battle because we are storytellers, right? We’re like, ‘I have an audience and I have you for two hours and I don’t want to lose you.’ But also it’s important to remember that things aren’t fixed, that the past is messy, that we tend to maybe simplify as we tell our past.”

This is reflected in the documentary’s form. Half of it records the activism from Goldin’s organisation P.A.I.N. (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now) and the protests they carry out in art institutions to which the Sacklers have donated, where their names are etched and engraved to engineer a prestige that their ri ing of OxyContin in America completely contradicts. The other half is Goldin’s history – her relationship with her family, the queer community, sex, and art – as shown through her own work, her photos shown in sequence with the photographer’s voiceover narration.

Poitras spent years interviewing Goldin, and while the majority of these conversations will forever remain private, the filmmaker found parallels between her methods and Goldin’s. “She said many times that she takes photographs to preserve history and memory, and to show the truth with a society that denies the truth, or a family that denies the truth, creating a record as a way of creating an archive of her experience,” Poitras explains. We get to see Goldin discussing her own art from a perspective that can be both vulnerable and distanced, a process that makes archiving deeply intimate.

Poitras is no stranger to intimate filmmaking. Her Oscar-winning doc CitizenFour, which recorded Edward Snowden’s whistleblowing testimony, largely unfolded in one Hong Kong hotel room with only a couple of other witnesses. “You can't get more intimate than somebody trusting you with their life,” Poitras reflects. “Like, literally, I’m putting my life in your hands and then having this meeting.” But the emotional powers of intimacy have never felt so necessary as they are here.

Together with editor Joe Bini, the wealth of available material was collated and refined into threads and chapters that facilitated the film’s seamless moving through time. Adamant she wasn’t making a biopic, Poitras and Bini found inventive ways to layer the emotional impact of Goldin’s stories – but you can tell

how difficult a process this must have been. “It took a long, long time for it to actually flow, for it to move between the past and the present in a way that didn’t leave the audience confused, wanting more, or feeling ripped away from something at the wrong time,” Poitras says.

Perhaps the most potent aspect of All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is an openness that extends beyond Goldin’s experience. Queer artist David Wojnarowicz, who died from AIDS in 1992, is remembered through recordings and memories that highlight the charged, mournful vantage points Goldin has held as an artist. “When you meet someone like David, his words… I don’t know, they feel like they could change the world,” says Poitras. “And that’s amazing, that one person, those words, his words, or Nan’s photographs or Nan’s artwork, they have such power. Where do they come from? From a very pure place.” Poitras has shown true artistic power cannot only come from life’s beauty, but by showing its bloodshed too.

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is released 27 Jan by Altitude

You can't get more intimate than somebody trusting you with their life”

Laura Poitras

Nan Goldin. She tells us how she wanted to make a film that wasn’t a biopic and that would implicate her audience

Image: courtesy of The Beauty And The Bloodshed

Nan in the bathroom with Bea Boston, 1970s

Photo: Jan Stürmann

Laura Poitras

Unheard Stories

Tonderai Munyevu hadn’t spent much time in Brixton prior to 2022. His first visit coincided with a four-week research trip. It was a process, by his admission, that did not go as expected. “I thought it was just going to be a very simple play about the misunderstanding of the Black community,” he tells me, recounting how the inspiration for the play came from a Guardian article published in 2021 citing low levels of vaccine uptake in the Black community. “I just thought that was really appropriate, and that would just debunk this fact. And it really was quite confronting, then, seeing different stories begin to emerge.”

Those stories lie at the heart of Blaccine: First Dose, a three-part audio drama and stage production that will premiere at Pitlochry Festival Theatre this month. The play is made up of three monologues: Process by Maheni Arthur, Tri er Warning by Tonderai Munyevu and Brixton Royalty by Isaac Tomiczek. The series will be presented as both a stage and audio production, exploring the question of what it means to be Black in Britain during a global health crisis.

At its heart, Blaccine offers us a nuanced and sensitive portrayal of the lines between historical white violence and present-day vaccine hesitancy. The complexity of this interplay is, as Munyevu su ests, crucial for the audience to grasp.

“We want them to see Black people as heroic, because we are not out for revenge. We are out for understanding and equality. So actually, when you see a Black person, there’s a level of trauma that they are carrying. And in my experience, it’s often carried very well, and it’s often really an effort to not continue or perpetuate these horrible things that have happened to us. That’s why I think Black joy is so important.”

While witty nods to rogue barbers and the Dulwich bu y brigade offer crucial moments of joy, Blaccine does not shy away from the sting of post-pandemic pain. The fear of bodies being bound to the whims of powers much bi er than us – and the loss that comes when places that were so familiar change – resurface repeatedly over each of the monologues. It was the universality of this loss that became a way to talk to the communities in Brixton, who, as Tonderai is keen to explain, “were really reeling from what had happened to them.” One interaction in particular is

seared in his mind. “A man... wanted to talk to us about his experience, how Brixton market was being taken over, what the ramifications really were for him personally. A touch of that story was sharing his history of being from the Caribbean, but also feeling like he couldn’t go and have his leg fixed in the UK on the NHS, because nobody was listening to him. And in that moment, it encapsulated all of what I think this project is about: the unheard story. When somebody finds you to tell you something and you think, ‘If we weren’t doing this project, this man would not be talking about this.’”

These conversations, Munyevu says, have continued to have a profound impact months after the end of the writing process. “I realised that there was this privilege I had coming to the UK from Zimbabwe. If someone were to say, ‘Go back home,’ I could say, ’Yeah, don’t get it twisted, I could, but I am choosing to stay,’” he laughs. “That gave me protection. But now it’s time to say I am part of this landscape, and it’s not this monolithic experience of Blackness. And I’ve realised that I

am only as okay as the most vulnerable Black British person.”

Though he’s a self-defined pragmatist, Munyevu is concerned about the evaporation of a collective solidarity that emerged in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd. “The world seems to have come back harsher,” he reflects. It is this sense of togetherness that Munyevu hopes will be re-captured when Blaccine premieres in the new year.

“One thing I really think is beautiful about this piece is this isn’t a work just for Black people. There is that space for Black people to come be seen and heard, but this is a play about how we emerge from grief. Everyone is coming to terms with the grief of the pandemic, and with the grief of COVID. Everybody knows somebody who left this Earth. The language around the pandemic doesn’t have space for that grief. It doesn’t have a space for loss, and then for rediscovery of joy as well. I think we need that.”

Blaccine: First Dose, online, Pitlochry Festival Theatre, 12, 19, & 26 Jan

“Covid didn’t discriminate, society did this for us”: Tonderai Munyevu’s piece in Blaccine: First Dose explores vaccine hesitancy and Black Britishness

Interview:

Ellen Davis-Walker

Photo: Nigel R Glasgow Blaccine: First Dose

“I’ve realised that I am only as okay as the most vulnerable Black British person”

Twenty-four Hours

rest of the band and hope they were cool with the idea. And, thankfully, they were.”

The results are beguiling; musically, One Day is scored through with the kind of broiling urgency that inevitably falls by the wayside when you spend years agonising over every detail of an album, as Haliechuk acknowledges. “I knew I wanted to be more straightforward; to be harder and more a ressive. Plans and preconceptions about what you’re going to do on an album are one thing, but once you’re in the room with an instrument in your hand, whatever is going to come out, comes out.”

Lyrically, though, One Day is highly considered, with Abraham drafted back into the writing process for the first time since 2014 and both he and Haliechuk using an extended period of reflection to brood over the subtleties of recent changes in their lives, especially across the pandemic period. Cicada is a deeply thoughtful lament to those they lost over the past three years, while lead single Found turns gripes about the gentrification of Toronto on their head.

“W

hen we were young and didn’t have any money, making a record in a day was a necessity.”

Early 2021 marked two decades since Toronto’s premier hardcore outfit played their first shows. At the time, their creative mastermind, Mike Haliechuk, was locked down along with the rest of the world, and while the themes that would inform the sixth Fucked Up full-length were still something he was ruminating on, he already had the songs in his back pocket.

There was a sense, maybe, that Fucked Up as a project had become too big, too sprawling, almost unmanageable. With every release, they’ve demonstrated ambition and a burning want to do something new, but the sheer scope of the band had meant that by the time they completed a world

tour in 2019 behind the previous year’s Dose Your Dreams, they were continuing to spin a host of different plates.

But Haliechuk began to yearn for a reset, and thought back to the group’s early days. “We would turn out 7-inches literally overnight, because that was when studios were empty and we could use them cheaply,” he recalls on a transatlantic call from Toronto. “I remember doing the Generation 12-inch in 2003 through the night, and then driving ten hours back from Philadelphia because people had to be back at their day jobs on Monday morning.”

Over the years, he says, gradually bi er budgets meant slowly relaxing into looser timeframes, until, by the time they put out Year of the Horse in 2021, it was the product of “five or six years of fucking around”; Dose Your Dreams, meanwhile, resulted from “two years of constant fuckery, tinkering away until it was perfect.” Once he was off the road in 2019, Haliechuk was ready for a hairpin turn.

Without telling his bandmates, he went into the studio with engineer Alex Gamble for three eight-hour sessions across three days – for 24 hours in total. The goal was to make a record in a day. One Day is the remarkable fruit of those sessions. “I was quite strict about it,” he explains. “It really was 24 hours maximum with a guitar in my hand. At the end, I had ten songs, I had them sequenced, I knew what the B-sides were going to be, and I knew I didn’t need to come back for overdubs. And then, you know, I had to go to the

“The city has been changing a lot, structurally, over the past ten years,” says Haliechuk. “It seems like the only things being built are these massive condo buildings that everybody despises, and places we loved – venues, our practice space – are being destroyed to make way for them. But, on Found, I was thinking about the bi er picture on issues of change, and thinking that it’s easy to forget that you’re that person for somebody who came before you. Instead of being an angry old guy complaining that my favourite store closed down, I was thinking, what culture was erased so that my ancestors could come to live here? That seems like a more appropriate way to think about change.”

Transformation, of course, is something written into the very DNA of Fucked Up, with One Day representing their latest shedding of old skin. “If there’s been a tension in our band over the past 20 years,” Haliechuk reflects, “it’s that we’ve picked up new audiences and alienated old ones as we’ve gone along.

“But I’ve always just thought that it’s so easy for punk bands to become a part of history, for genre bands to be sucked into the past and just play songs from 40 years ago over and over again. Things change over the years – you might start a family, you might have different jobs or interests – but, to me, I’ve never wanted to do anything other than write music. That’s why I’ve always tried to keep us moving forward, towards whatever the new thing is. I think it’s served us well.”

One Day is released on 27 Jan via Merge

fuckedup.cc

After

years of Fucked Up’s scope becoming ever more panoramic, guitarist Mike Haliechuk went back to basics to make a record in a day

Interview: Joe Go ins

“It’s so easy for punk bands to become a part of history, for genre bands to just play songs from 40 years ago over and over again”

Mike Haliechuk, Fucked Up

Photo: Jeaninne Kaufer

Artisanal Excellence

Meet the four textile designers selected to show with Craft Scotland at Collect

Interviews: Stacey Hunter

Four of Scotland’s most distinctive and innovative craft-led textile designers have been selected to join the Craft Scotland exhibition at this year’s Collect showcase in London. Collect is the leading international fair for contemporary craft and design. The panel – which included renowned design critic, journalist and curator, Corinne Julius and Senior Curator of Modern & Contemporary Design at the National Museum of Scotland, Sarah Rothwell – have chosen craftspeople who are pushing the boundaries of their discipline and bringing fresh ideas to contemporary craft.

Glasgow’s Mariam Syed is passionate about exploring new weave techniques. She designs and weaves distinctive rugs and fabrics for interiors which capture colour and pattern in complementary and contrasting ways. Syed discovered weaving through her love for mathematics and she was taught how to weave by artisans in rural Pakistan around 15 years ago.

“I find weaving a fascinating combination of mathematical skills and creativity. I’m interested in exploring how colours behave in relation to other colours and shapes,” she explains. “My expertise lies in the traditional art form of weaving; the binding of different types of yarns to construct different textures and patterns. I enjoy challenging my creativity by experimenting with scale and

different weights of yarn to explore the diversity and handle of the final piece.

“My favourite materials to work with are silk and wool. The vibrancy of silk reminds me of the beautiful colours of my childhood home Pakistan and wool is quite synonymous with Britain; my home now.”

Iseabal Hendry makes luxury leather accessories that are designed to minimise waste. Based in Strathcarron, Hendry is inspired by the traditional craft skills that she grew up with – from basket-weaving and roof-thatching to clinker boatbuilding, she blends together a variety of techniques and methods of making to create bags and purses that are stocked by luxury brands like The Fife Arms. Hendry takes individual segments of a material and combines them by hand to create work that is both beautiful and functional.

“My work is inspired by time-honoured traditions, which feel like an intrinsic part of my history. However I am passionate about pushing beyond these references to create work that feels right for this moment in time; a modern Scottish aesthetic. My practice originated from a desire for zero-waste. By weaving very thin strips of leather with cotton, I can make use of the entire hide with almost no wastage. My work allows me to make use of the smallest slivers of leather, from 0.7cm wide and 4cm long.”

Eve Campbell is based in the village of Tighnabruaich, on the western arm of the Kyles of Bute. Inspired by Scotland’s nature and architecture, the designer works in a variety of mediums. For Collect, Campbell is creating work driven by intuitive and bold designs to enhance living spaces.

“The work that has had greatest significance to my practice are my large paper stencilled, screen-printed, one-off linen wall hangings. My prints are created as if they were an extension of my sketchbook and drawings. Through paper stencilling, masking and colour mixing I am able to approach printing in a very spontaneous manner creating one-off designs that capture the colours, shapes and patterns of nature on Scotland’s West Coast where unique habitats are formed such as Atlantic hazel and oak.”

Campbell has been working on commissions for The Conran Shop, and collaborative table settings with Drey Workshop for a project commissioned by Argyll and the Isles Tourism Cooperative to celebrate locally produced food.

Kate Owens is a Glasgow-based artist who makes lively printed textiles with motifs that “sta er, bump and overlap”. Using an adapted block printing method, where the block is replaced by a wooden sandal, Owens combines print with choreography.

“I think about movement in opposition to being fixed. My back has been partially fixed with titanium

rods since I was 19 and I exercise around this static structure with my practice and my body. These large-scale prints progress rhythmically across lengths of fabric which are then sewn to become hangings for walls or windows. I create hangings for a range of situations including private commissions and public exhibitions. Each hanging is an intimate record of the physical making experience.

“I’m interested in how makers can be more responsive and sensitive to people and nature through their practice. In tandem with my studiobased work I create participatory projects and workshops for community groups and gallery programmes. Through my practice and my education work I encourage the use of low-impact techniques and more sustainable materials such as re-purposed fabrics, linen, natural dye and solvent free inks.”

Featured in the Craft Scotland Collect exhibit are: Kate Owens, Iseabal Hendry, SUH MOONJU, Elizabeth Jane Campbell, Charlott Rodgers, Borja Moronta, Ruth Elizabeth Jones, Eve Campbell, Mariam Syed, SHY Design Studio

Collect, Somerset House, 3-5 Mar (previews 1 & 2 Mar) followed by a virtual showcase on Artsy.net

craftscotland.org @mariam.w.syed @iseabalhendry @evecampbelltextiles @kateowensgrace @craftscotland

Image: courtesy of the artist

Eve Campbell

Image: courtesy of the artist

Mariam Syed

Stick To It

Interview: Eilidh Akilade Illustrations: Lizzie Snow

Two hands love-heart around a trans flag with ‘Sisters not cis-ters’ written upon it. Another reads, ‘No borders. No nations. Just people.’ A little further down, a handwritten one predicts: ‘Coming to a green space near you… GREEDY DEVELOPERS.’ It looks like it’s on one of those green electrical boxes, outside Langside Halls and across from The Shed, maybe, but it’s a little unclear.

Instagram account @stickers.of.southside has been active for about a year now, first posting in January 2022. It does exactly what it says: posts pictures of stickers around Glasgow’s Southside. There’s a strong focus on radical politics and grassroots organising, particularly – as the bio reads – from “the good folks flying their colours in and around Govanhill.”

Strangely, the Instagram account began partially in response to the not so good folks. Guy* has lived in Govanhill for some time now. Over the years, they had formed a habit of keeping an eye out for stickers of the bigoted variety and then scraping them off. “One – because they don’t deserve the platform; and two – because I don’t want other people seeing them and then having a bad day or feeling scared in public,” they explain. One day, while running errands together, their friend noticed this habit. “She saw me scanning the lampposts and I explained and she asked me, ‘Do you ever look at the nice ones?’ And it was a very simple and obvious question.” With that, @stickers.of.southside was born. Guy was convinced that if they didn’t do it then and there, in the middle of the street, they maybe never would.

On the account, there are ideas that come up again and again: queer solidarity, anti-racism, pro-immigration, workers’ and tenants’ rights, to name a few. In Glasgow’s Southside, such movements are alive and kicking and the stickers are testament to that. “It’s a way of signalling to other people that they are among friends,” says Guy. It’s a subtle, yet powerful, way of doing so.

“They’re used in quite a covert way,” Guy continues. Ta ing or wheat pasting have long radical histories; but they’re time-consuming acts, leaving folk vulnerable to getting caught, or at least noticed. With stickers, it’s as simple as peeling one off and pressing it onto the nearest bench, bin, or lamppost.

“Stickers, especially on the street, are very ephemeral. They’re very vulnerable to the elements,” Guy explains. Despite all their stickiness, they rarely last very long; the hope, however, is that the messages of these ones will. Digitally documenting them out and about, as they were intended to exist, helps move that hope towards a reality.

And yet, unlike the easily moveable Instagram-made ‘stickers’ we may place upon a

witty story, the ones on @stickers. of.southside feel a little more fixed, plastered upon a page created just for them. However, if 2022 taught us anything, it’s that no social media platform is forever. For all the angst this may cause us in the present, there’s also – when it comes to this account, at least – something a little poetic to it: Instagram will eventually peel away, just like the stickers themselves.

For all it’s worth, Guy is pretty humble about the whole thing. “It’s just me putting [up] cool stuff that I saw – just like everyone else does with their lunches, or their weekend trip to Skye or something,” they say. In theory, yes, it’s not that deep. But knowing there are people out there who believe in the same things as you, who will welcome you and care for you, is sometimes enough to keep you going.

Ultimately, for Guy, the important stuff is the “material stuff”: “where you actually meet people and work with them to actually make material changes – whether that’s feeding people or keeping people warm or organising for employment rights or tenant advocacy.” No matter how much vinyl coats it, a sticker’s impact is limited.

“There’s all these different organisations around the neighbourhood who are focused on all these different aspects that have very tangible effects on people’s lives,” says Guy. Such groups are what allows the stickers to, well, stick with us. Amid all the gentrification Govanhill and its counterparts have endured, these stickers are a hopeful reminder: it’s not all oat flat whites and rising rents.

Guy is keen to hear from any creators of the account’s stickers – they want to credit good people for their good work. Such collaboration also plays its part behind the scenes. “I have people messaging and submitting stickers that they’ve seen in the wild as well, which is also really gratifying,” they say. These stickers often preach a certain togetherness; it’s unsurprising that they further facilitate it.

The world we want to live in will need more than a little adhesive to truly stick. But these stickers and @stickers.of.southside will continue to make their mark – even if it won’t last forever. “At this time, at this place, there were people who believed in this thing,” says Guy.

“These are things worth documenting.”

@stickers.of.southside

*Name has been changed to protect identity.

Everyone loves a good sticker – especially one with something to say. We talk to the Instagram account documenting the radical stickers of Glasgow’s Southside

Released 17 January by

Listen to: 20220302 - sarabande

Album of the Month Ryuichi Sakamoto — 12

It would be easy to approach legendary Japanese composer and performer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s musical “diary” with the feeling that it was crafted out of a moribund sense of duty. Recorded during rounds of treatment for cancer, his second such diagnosis within the span of a decade, its release was preceded by a livestreamed concert Sakamoto described as perhaps his last. But 12 is more concerned with the present it sought to document. Convalescing after major surgery, Sakamoto took to his instruments, recording as and when he could. The collection instead deals in the turbulent and unpredictable period that comes before the unknown.

The first seven tracks place Sakamoto at the peak of a mountain, sometimes in calm and in others in a great gale. We hear what could be assisting medical apparatus, and rhythmic breathing, amidst other natural background noise. The first “day” contains cavernous synths – there’s a desolate quality to these, bassy notes bottoming out as the composition progresses, and devoid of Sakamoto’s distinctive piano playing. It seems that it’s not until months later that those familiar keys are allowed to enter. On this front half though, they are easily displaced – 20220202 lacks them, dark Badalamenti-esque drones winning over.

Sakamoto’s last album async – which was recorded after a previous cancer treatment – is seismic and intricately thematically mapped, using samples and a colourful palette of techniques and equipment. The diaristic, stripped back process it was necessary to use to assemble 12 makes it a much looser, more instinctive listen.

On 20220207, there is feedback sounding not dissimilar to a flatlining ECG machine. From here, the album begins to change. Minor key synths, which draw out across up to nine-minute stretches, make way for shorter, more delicate pieces. The achingly beautiful 20220302 is the only track denoting its style: “sarabande”. It’s a dance – here, for no one in particular. Strangely, the chronology of the tracklist is broken only in the brief final moments. We step a month into the past, left only with chimes and the wind that plays them, perhaps signalling a grasping back.

We cannot be certain of Sakamoto’s physical ableness, or his depth of emotion, on each of the days documented, as much as the timbre of the music urges us to. What we are left with is a record of endurance, stru le and the lingering ability to create something new. 12 shows a path can be made, even into that unknown. [Tony Inglis]

Giant Swan Fantasy Food

Ladytron Time’s Arrow Out 20 Jan via Cooking Vinyl

Milan Records

Låpsley Cautionary Tales of Youth

Albums

Fucked Up One Day Merge, 27 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: Found, Falling Right Under, Cicada

In 2019, Fucked Up guitarist Mike Haliechuk began pondering what he could write and record in just one day. The resulting answer to that question – in the form of the Canadian hardcore veterans’ aptlytitled sixth album One Day – is sta ering, and arguably the purest and fullest expression of the band in its current form. It’s also utterly joyous. Opening track Found sets the album’s maximalist tone in a cavalcade of ripping classic rock guitar harmonies, stadium-sized hooks and an absolutely savage vocal performance from Damian Abraham, whose gravel-throated bark is hungry and positively dripping with raw energy here.

It’s a level of (mostly) upbeat intensity which rarely lets up throughout, providing some of the album’s most enjoyable moments in Huge New Her, Roar, Broken Little Boys and propulsive title track One Day. Then there’s Cicada, a bittersweet Haliechuk-sung nu et of vintage alt-rock, the hardcore-meetsglam-pop of I Think I Might Be Weird and soaring album highlight Falling Right Under. For those already converted, this is sure to tattoo a permanent smile on your face, but it will no doubt satisfy even the most casual appreciator of punk, hardcore or classic rock too. [Ryan Drever]

Joesef Permanent Damage AWAL, 13 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: It’s Been a Little Heavy Lately, Didn’t Know How (To Love You), Joe

After two excellent EPs, Permanent Damage elegantly sticks to the formula of sad-boy soul that has seen Glasgow singer Joesef get lauded by everyone from Sam Smith and Mark Ronson to Elton John. The powerful Just Come Home With Me platforms the quiet desperation of wanting one last night with a lover you’ll probably never see again; a last-minute pine for a relationship that ‘has no future in sight’. The theme of self-abnegation continues in the following song Borderline, where Joesef asks a lover to ‘remember what you loved me for, even when I’m on the floor’.

Searing introspection is abundant on this record and the depressive lyrics could almost veer towards being overwhelming if the hooks (and his voice) weren’t so captivating. It’s not a faultless album; the energy dips towards the end and never quite recovers. But there are some truly spectacular moments. Joesef is at his very best on the bouncy funk of It’s Been a Little Heavy Lately, the smooth soul of Didn’t Know How (To Love You), and the anthemic pop single Joe. Permanent Damage is an impressive and self-aware debut from an artist unafraid to wrestle with feelings of loneliness, alienation, and self-destructive tendencies out in the open. [Marco Marcelline]

January 2023 — Review

The Great White Sea Eagle Domino, 13 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: A Sweetness In You, Hold Out For Love

When James Yorkston started writing these songs on piano, he didn’t know where he was going. But he knew where he’d been. The acclaimed songwriter and author stands behind a beautiful body of work and is carrying a tailwind from records with Yorkston/Thorne/Khan and The Second Hand Orchestra, alongside recent recognition for his second novel The Book of Gaels. But it’s these 12 weary waltzes and bright ballads, written gazing upon the sea from the window of his Cellardyke studio, that will find their way into your heart forever.

Recording again with The Second Hand Orchestra’s Karl-Jonas Winqvist, Yorkston is joined at the mic here by Cardigans singer Nina Persson. It’s a match made in heaven when the light in Persson’s voice gets into the cracks of Yorkston’s baritone. But the heart of this record resides in the solitary darkness of songs such as the devastating A Sweetness In You, written for Frightened Rabbit’s late Scott Hutchison. ‘I think of him often as I look out to the sea / And I live by the coast’ is a noble line to write about someone lost in such tragic circumstances. But that’s Yorkston for you: a noble artist. [Alan O’Hare]

Epic Records / Sony Music Entertainment, 20 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: Bla Bla Bla, Gasoline, Mark Chapman

After winning the Eurovision Song Contest for Italy in 2021, Måneskin have become an integral part of the resurgence of glam-rock among younger listeners. They aren’t shy about their mission to provoke – they are steadfast in their depiction of rock as inextricable from queerness, fluidity, and rebellion. Their third studio album, Rush!, features plenty of uptempo punk-rock tracks, with short but sweet guitar solos by Thomas Ra i and polished vocals by Damiano David.

The album alternates between these upbeat rock tracks and calmer, more deliberate ballads, which tell a heartfelt story of fame, loneliness, and yearning. In the latter half of the album, Måneskin gives us more Italian language tracks, which expand into a heavier, more driving sound. The album spans multiple nostalgic sub-genres of rock, from the pop-rock of the 70s and 80s to the lyrical ballads of the early 2000s.

Måneskin show themselves to be masters of their style – the album, like the band’s aesthetic, is tightly executed and high-octane. Rush! perfectly captures the sense of spontaneous authenticity that makes for a one-of-a-kind show. Måneskin continuously prove that outcasts deserve a good time, and they are here to give it to us. [Rho Chung]

James Yorkston, Nina Persson and The Second Hand Orchestra

Måneskin Rush!

I y Pop Every Loser

Atlantic Records x Gold Tooth Records, 6 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: New Atlantis, The Regency

I y Pop’s albums are one or the other; an upper or a downer. For example, the iconically energetic Lust for Life followed more melancholic experiments in The Idiot. Recent releases like Post Pop Depression and Free have seen the ageing rock god delve into darker themes alongside sombre instrumentals. Now, Every Loser sees I y on the up. Intro Frenzy matches the speed and strength of The Stooges’ hits, with subsequent tracks suggesting a busy studio, alive with sliding bass, echoing synths, even cowbells, but the composition comes together under Pop’s dynamic vocals. Every Loser is not without its bluesy side – Morning Show invites conversations about self image and the public eye, and Comments is a rumination on social media, complete with a Zuckerberg call-out. The Regency builds a lo-fi, static sound, only to shift into full-force and close the album in a protest of punk-rock and profanity. Every Loser is lyrically and technically multidimensional – Pop has had the chance to recharge the gritty, psychic energy necessary for a more metal release. He’s free to stomp about the album like a Tyrannosaurus rex, a fearsome force of nature from a long-past, primaeval era. [Lewis Robertson]

If you’ve ever set a child loose in a sweetie shop then you’ll have some sense of the joy of production on CACTI. It’s a self-guided journey through genre, facilitated by old mixtapes and a dusty organ at Invada Studios.

13 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: Agreeing for Two, Help

Rozi Plain thrives in a group setting, once more guiding a cast of DIY multi-instrumentalists from across the UK to bring her intricate ideas to life. The songs remain deceptively simple, but what could easily suffice with just vocals and strummed chords becomes much more when slathered in keys, synths and sax.

At surface level these are breezy, easygoing alt-pop songs. Plain’s vocals are understated and the arrangements rarely overpower the direct lyrical entreaties. But there’s a gilt finish to this album, showing a keen curatorial eye and ability to polish without losing the beating heart. It’s almost like the sophisti-pop of the 80s and early 90s, but without the naff production.

Alabaster dePlume brings his drawling sax on Agreeing for Two and Sore. The synths are another real standout, providing wobbly edges or pulsating otherworldliness, while harp from Serafina Steer (Help) or strings from Emma Smith (Sore) offset the otherwise serene atmosphere. PRIZE doesn’t shout for your attention, but it’s hard to ignore when you give it time. Rozi Plain is miles away from the sedate folk of her early career, though the subtle interpolation of additional elements is so masterfully done that she makes it look easy. [Lewis Wade]

13 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: blue bones (deathwish), roundabout sadness, spite

Self-sufficiency is a large part of Billy Nomates’ appeal, but it feels like this solitary approach to recording doesn’t really do her justice. CACTI is understandably more subdued than her self-titled debut, but the boisterous numbers it does contain might feel more dynamic played live – it feels like the energy that makes her such a captivating performer is being restricted by her drum machine.

CACTI portrays the road through depression, but not with any sort of neat path that resolves with a happy ending. If anything, it’s the opposite – the only track offering a sliver of hope is blue bones (deathwish), an account of becoming disillusioned with depression that comes third in the tracklisting. Instead CACTI ends with a distant belt into the abyss: ‘I can’t wait for the blackout signal / Yeah I dream of shutdowns now’. It’s a breath of fresh air, but we’re left wishing we’d got more of it sooner. [Laurie Presswood]

20 Jan rrrrr

Listen to: V2, V3

Following 2022’s Living Torch Kali Malone releases Does Spring Hide Its Joy, a set of recordings of the titular piece, written during lockdown in a series of temporarily abandoned concert halls as an exploration of space and time. Enlisting Stephen O’Malley of Sunn O))) and the always fantastic cellist Lucy Railton into a group to interpret her compositions, the trio bring new textures to Malone’s harmonic brilliance.

The album consists of three versions of the same piece and three hours of Malone’s composition at its most oblique and minimal, the piece in a state of constant but glacial shift. It’s often beautifully done, particularly the foregrounding of Railton’s cello towards the end of V3 that has a real growling beauty, as well as the moment two-thirds of the way through V2 in which O’Malley’s trademark waves of distortion pierce through the mix.

However there are long stretches in which the pieces are impressive rather than affecting, where you can marvel at Malone’s skill with timbre without being particularly moved in any way. It leaves a sense that the album feels more like one for the most committed fans of all three artists, but one that given the chance has some astonishing moments. [Joe Creely]

Rozi Plain PRIZE Memphis Industries,

Billy Nomates CACTI Invada Records,

Kali Malone Does Spring Hide Its Joy Ideologic Organ,

Music Now

Have you just about pushed aside those bloated Christmas feels? If not, you better act quick as we have plenty of new music to whet your appetite for the start of the new year. But first, there are a few gems we missed last month that are most certainly worthy of your attention. Glaswegian noisemaker YULYSEUS released their sonically explorative, searchingly titled new album In the Dark Palaces of Both Our Hearts Fellow Glaswegian outfit Dr. Veers also shared their debut album Deep Glue Sea, brimming with gritty guitars and tones reminiscent of The Hives and early 00s alternative rock.

In the world of EPs, Scottish stalwarts The Twilight Sad released a new live EP featuring four tracks recorded from their European run of live shows while We Were Promised Jetpacks revealed A Complete One-Eighty, a series of reworks from their most recent album Enjoy the View. Alt duo prospects Midnight Ambulance, formed between Paris and North Berwick, unveiled Smoke & Mirrors, an electrically charged debut EP that shows shades of Royal Blood while also harnessing left-turning elements of dance and techno – definitely a duo worth keeping an eye on. Wine Moms also shared Flowerbrains. The Glasgow punks brim with politically charged tunes of anger and angst while showing a softer side on the minimal acoustic track Bollo. It won’t be long before they’re making their case as one of the frontrunners in the west coast’s burgeoning DIY punk scene. Elsewhere, Dundee’s Theo Bleak shared the beautifully sculpted For Seasons, and archie also revealed Our Little Secret EP.

A plethora of scintillating singles were also released last month. Alt-folk artist Jodie Elizabeth King released her tender debut single Flesh and Bone, Bemz & Sean Focus combined superbly on new club-ready track Raging Bull, while Tayside’s Gossiper shared not one, but two singles titled Army Knife and Maude respectively. Rosie H Sullivan lit up our ears with Lights, Lewis Capaldi shared Pointless, Subject 13 & Conscious Route smothered our ears with Dripping Sauce, new wave legends Altered Images showcased their new single The Other Side and Carla J Easton delighted our musical tastebuds with Cherry Tree Out Front. Some Scottish albums grabbing the spotlight this month include Joesef’s glorious debut Permanent Damage (13 Jan) and James Yorkston’s The Great White Sea Eagle (13 Jan). Full insights of these records can be found on p40. But here, we focus our attention on other new releases that are simply sumptuous. WAVES, the debut album from CLR theory, is one of them.

heart. The duo’s harmonies shine brightest; intertwining beautifully with plenty of reverb that heightens the atmospheric feel of both voices. CLR theory say that the initial idea for the album started as voicenote gifts to one another during lockdown. But now, they’ve transformed it into a gift for everyone, creating a warm sonic hug of an album that would perfectly soundtrack an evening by the fire with the chill of winter howling and wailing outside.

this is an album with

L.T. Leif releases their new album Come Back To Me, But Lightly on 23 January via Lost Map Records in collaboration with OK Pal Records. The Glasgow-based Canadian singer-songwriter creates sounds that are indebted to the woody, piney wilderness of their home country as well as the landscapes of Iceland and Finland where they’ve previously lived. The recording of their latest body of work shares a similarly intercontinental makeup with contributors based across the globe. Right from the offset (quite literally with the opening B major chord of Gentle Moon) it’s hard not to feel a smile etch upon your face. It’s a remarkably intimate album considering its spatial genesis, with Leif’s lyrical openness and vulnerability coming to the fore in fine style. Varying sonic textures from guitars to quirky rattles of pots and pans evoke images of late-night campfires and Leif succeeds in delivering what will surely be one of the highlights of their experienced musical career.

That’s not all the new music worth stocking up on for January just yet. Eat the Friek share new music with the release of their double A-side single Drinks Cabinet / Arrow. Evoking a cool garage-psych feel alongside stabs of angular rhythms and hints of Black Country, New Road art-jazz tones, this outfit sound like they’d be a hoot at a live show. However, on top of all that, one single you simply cannot go without listening to this month is the debut release from Carsick Charlie titled Finn. The acoustic guitar melodies underpinning the song are sublime, but the delicate vocals, mature lyrics and heart-tu ing string parts sat atop them are sensational. It seems unjust to place artists like Phoebe Bridgers alongside this artist after just one single, but there’s no doubt there’s definitely a hint of sparkle about Carsick Charlie that’s bound to shine in the year ahead.

Released on 20 January, this self-recorded, self-produced body of work was born in a flat in Glasgow’s Southside and nurtured by Gill Hi ins and Hannah Jarrett-Scott. From the bothy ballad imbued a cappella opener I’d Love You for Less to the Celtic infused Breathe,

Scottish roots at its

Words: Jamie Wilde

Photo: Craig M. Stewart

CLR theory

Photo: Oisín Kealy

Film of the Month — All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

Director: Laura Poitras Starring: Nan Goldin

by Altitude Certificate TBC

Academy Award-winning director Laura Poitras has made a career out of documenting individuals who stand up to powerful forces. Her previous subjects include Edward Snowden (Citizenfour) and Julian Assange (Risk), so it’s perhaps no surprise that she was drawn to Nan Goldin, a photographer who has revolutionised the art world in more ways than one.

An achingly personal tale of art, addiction and activism, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed represents a continuation of Poitras’s journalistic approach to documentary and, at the same time, a departure of sorts. Pushing her verité style into a more emotional terrain, the film explores Goldin’s life, from growing up in an abusive family and surviving foster care, to her rise to prominence in the art world. But there’s a political dimension to the film too, with Poitras focusing on Goldin’s crusade to take down the Sackler family, whose company Purdue Pharma transformed the prescription painkiller market with the invention of the highly addictive OxyContin.

Rather than chart a linear path through Goldin’s life, Poitras begins the film by observing one of her staged ‘die-ins’ at the Sackler Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Organised by Goldin and her advocacy group PAIN (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now), these demonstrations are designed to call attention to the Sacklers’ use of philanthropy to artwash their reputation and distance themselves from the opioid epidemic. Poitras has long been interested in how activism and the actions of individuals striving for justice can be channelled in service of change. In Goldin, she might just have found an answer.

Poitras traces Goldin’s transformation from artist to activist by weaving together various stories from her past, with each new chapter illuminating the personal and political roots of her creative practice. Goldin has never been one to shy away from the camera, often including herself among her deeply intimate photographic projects, but here she seems more candid than ever, talking openly about her sister’s tragic suicide, her experience as a sex worker and even the abusive relationship that resulted in the iconic self-portraits of domestic abuse in her seminal work The Ballad of Sexual Dependency

Goldin initially founded PAIN after becoming addicted to OxyContin following an operation on her wrist in 2014, but her activism is also a response to witnessing the AIDS crisis of the 80s and 90s. Throughout the film Poitras uses excerpts from the various slideshows Goldin constructed over the course of her career, including photos from Witnesses: Against Our Vanishing in which she used her camera to immortalise the friends and loved ones she lost to AIDS. It’s here that we begin to realise that the film is ultimately about two epidemics, and a society that suffers from amnesia when it comes to protecting its most vulnerable.

A profoundly moving tale of protest and a window into the brutality of American capitalism, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed not only celebrates Goldin’s work as an artist and activist, but speaks to the importance of community during times of loss. [Patrick Gamble]

Image: courtesy of Nan Goldin

Scotland on Screen: Leyla Coll-O’Reilly

We speak to

and

Filmography: Groom (2022)

Stage: Daddy Drag (2019), Hopeless (2017), HOWL[ing] (2014), What a Fanny! (2013)

Collected poetry: In Public/In Private (2022)

Instagram: @leylajosephine Twitter: @LeylaJosephine1

Leyla Josephine is an artist who’s so multi-hyphenated and so multi-talented that one name isn’t quite enough to cover her practice. Under that title, you probably know her as an award-winning poet and theatre-maker, but you might be less familiar with her work as filmmaker Leyla Coll-O’Reilly. “Originally, I wanted to go by Leyla Coll-O’Reilly in film and Leyla Josephine in poetry,” she explains when I bring up my uncertainty about her preferred moniker during our chat. “But actually now they’re kind of merging, so I can see your confusion.”

We’re speaking to her by phone while she’s currently in Leyla Josephine mode, touring Ireland with her first poetry collection, In Public/In Private, although the bulk of our conversation revolves around her brilliant short film Groom, which was recently nominated for a BAFTA Scotland award. It’s a startling debut, ja ed, tangy and visceral. It follows a 15-year-old school leaver called Hannah (Mollie Milne) during her trial shift at a beauty salon where she encounters a toxic work environment and, in Skye (Michelle Donnelly), a boss who wants to groom her naive new protege in more ways than one.

Coll-O’Reilly had already written a few scripts and film treatments before she struck on the idea for Groom, which sprung up around the beginnings of the #MeToo movement. “There were a lot of conversations going on back then about the abuse of power,” she recalls, “and they were all coming from the perspective of a man abusing their power. But for me and my producer Laura McBride, we were talking about how women abused their power, but in quite different, often more manipulative ways. We were interested in telling the story of that. But it’s also a story about bisexuality and puberty and not quite knowing, not being able to read the relationship. I was interested in that period when you’re a teenager and inexperienced and trying to read signs but not being able to.”

The beauty salon setting, with its mix of heightened femininity and Cronenbergian sense of body manipulation and transfiguration, proves a potent arena in which to stage this story of a young woman being moulded and reformed before our eyes. “I always try to think really holistically when I’m writing,” says Coll-O’Reilly.

Interview: Jamie Dunn Groom Photo: Tiu

“What environments will fit the story the best? What sounds will suit it best? What textures will work best?” The beauty salon would give her the perfect location. “It’s a self-contained single location that’s hypersexual and it’s visually beautiful, but there’s also just a feeling there of mutilation, and of bodies changing so they’re unrecognisable,”

she says. “That all ran parallel to the way that Hannah was changing as a character due to her interactions with the other characters. So it was a fun cortex to play within.”

Scotland has a fine tradition of filmmaking poets, from Margaret Tait, the GOAT, to Coll-O’Reilly’s peer Sean Lìonadh, director of Too Rough Despite this, CollO’Reilly says she’s been met by surprise in some quarters for her pivot to directing. “People always ask me, ‘Oh, poetry to films, it must have been such a hard jump,’ but actually poetry is not that far away from filmmaking.” On the contrary, she reckons there are loads of similarities: “In both, you’re constantly trying to edit things down to go back to your core questions, your core themes. And like filmmaking, poetry requires you to choose images through your writing because you are actually painting in the reader’s mind. You choose very carefully what the reader sees.”

There’s certainly poetry in Groom. This might be partly down to the influence of the poetic Scottish filmmaking of Lynne Ramsay, who acted as a mentor for Coll-O’Reilly on the project, which was made through Lothian Films. “Lynne is one of my favourite filmmakers,” explains Coll-O’Reilly, “and what I love about Lynne’s work is that she never gives her audience all the answers. She really leaves spaces for questioning.” Coll-O’Reilly does something similar in Groom, particularly when it comes to the central relationship between Hannah and her glamorous new boss, Skye. “I didn’t want to make it black and white,” she says. “I didn’t want to be like, ‘Skye is an abuser and she’s a bad person’.”

The focus instead is the inscrutable Hannah. “The whole time I wanted the audience to be wondering, is Hannah comfortable in this situation? Is she safe in this situation? And are there sexual undertones? Within the whole thing, I don’t think I’m ever like: yes, she’s being abused? I think that’s what we were really pushing for, because sometimes when you are in situations that are unsafe, they don’t always feel unsafe or you’re not always sure. And sometimes when you feel unsafe, you actually are safe. I wanted to put the audience in that viewpoint of not knowing either, I suppose. That’s perfect for the short film form, right? Because you don’t have to go into all the psychology of it and the backgrounds. You’re just making an offering and letting the audience decide for themselves.”

In Public/In Private is out now, published by Burning Eye Books and available at leylajosephine.co.uk

poet

theatre-maker Leyla Coll-O’Reilly (aka Leyla Josephine) about Groom, her stunning new short about a taciturn teenage girl entering the intimidating world of a hypersexualised beauty salon

Leyla Coll-O'Reilly on the set of Groom

Alcarràs

FilmDirector: Carla Simón

Starring: Jordi Pujol Dolcet

rrrrr

With only two feature films, Carla Simón has proven to be one of the most exciting voices in Spanish cinema today. Her deeply personal autobiographical debut, Summer 1993, showed extraordinary sensitivity, and her poignant Golden Bear winner, Alcarràs, follows a similar path by returning to the rural landscapes that shaped the filmmaker’s childhood, capturing them through a melancholic lens.

The film, based on her own family and named after the tiny village in Catalonia where it’s set, focuses on the Solés, a clan of peach farmers facing their last harvest after decades of working the land. The territory will soon be taken from them, their beautiful peach orchards to be inexorably replaced by solar panels. Their lifestyle

no longer has a place in a world of technology and mass production.

These changing times are filmed with incisive precision and nostalgia. The characters in Alcarràs, even when they rebel, know there’s nothing they can do: it’s the end of an era. Their frustration and anger are portrayed with subdued resignation. Everything flows slowly as the summer inevitably ends, and Simón follows each member of the family’s journey with great narrative ambition. There are many characters, yet every subplot is finely balanced and adds depth to the main storyline.

Alcarràs is a labour of love – a moving, delicate piece of intense observational power. Simón’s committed ode to the land, with its naturalistic style and depiction of a rural lifestyle, is also a warning: moving forward doesn’t necessarily mean leaving tradition behind. [Fernando García]

Released 6 Jan by MUBI; certificate 15

Tár

Director: Todd Field

Starring: Cate Blanchett rrrrr

Lydia Tár (Cate Blanchett in typically imperious form), the complex protagonist of Todd Field’s riveting melodrama, is many things. She’s the first woman conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, she’s a rare EGOT winner, she’s impeccably tailored. But for all that talent and success, she’s also hampered by those oh-so-human foibles that have afflicted other great (read male) geniuses. She’s an egomaniac, she’s a bully, she likes to chase women half her age and she’s about to get her comeuppance.

Parallels between Lydia’s inappropriate behaviour and the Hollywood #MeToo movement are clear, but Field’s choice of a queer woman as the film’s power-mad preditor makes what would be a predictable downfall narrative all the more spiky and compelling. The film’s elliptical

structure, which puts Lydia’s chief impropriety off-screen, and its strict adherence to her point-of-view, add to the ambiguity as to how we’re meant to feel about our charismatic but often monstrous anti-hero.

Enablers and sycophants abound in Lydia’s inner circle. The only character to have her measure seems to be the orchestra’s first violinist, Sharon (Nina Hoss), who’s also the maestro’s wife (more muddling of the personal and the professional). The pair are raising a daughter together, whom Lydia is fiercely protective of, and the film would have benefited from more of Hoss’s icy side-eye. This is Blanchett’s show, though. Like the character she’s playing, she sucks up all available oxygen. It’s a testament to her tour-de-force performance that you might even feel a few pangs of sympathy as Lydia’s myriad offences come home to roost. [Jamie Dunn]

Released 13 Jan by Universal; certificate 15

Enys Men

Director: Mark Jenkin

Starring: Mary Woodvine, Edward Rowe, Flo Crowe, John Woodvine rrrrr

Enys Men follows an unnamed woman on a remote island, whose activities are haunted by the setting’s tragic mythology. Her daily duties – recording flowers, dropping stones down an empty mineshaft – go unexplained, preluding a descent through vignettes of abstract horror.

Primordial landscapes come alive with cinematography, and filming in 16mm makes Enys Men feel like an authentic early 70s artefact – washed out, achingly nostalgic, but still tactile, still operational. Red windbreakers and a red generator bleed through the mise-en-scene, highlighting objects necessary for survival. The protagonist covets blue things, like painted driftwood, tea for her blue tea set, or the attention of a young, blue-clad girl – possibly her

offspring, possibly a ghost of her earlier self.

More echoes of the past appear. Children sing for an ancient May Day rite. A druidic monolith stands beyond the gate. Scenes are told out of order. A stranger arrives on a boat we know to have sunk. A piece of its wreckage hangs over the fire as he drinks tea. He is one of the few characters with dialogue. Other phantoms, like miners, or a minister, watch from afar, sometimes solemn, sometimes grinning in delight.

The plot is cryptic, and characterisation hides between the lines, but femininity, nature and isolation are depicted as spectral themes in a retro glaze that speaks to recent horror sagas such as Midsommar and The Lighthouse. The aesthetic of early 70s horror is resurrected in this modern director’s expedition into a timeless afterlife. [Lewis Robertson]

Released 13 Jan by BFI; certificate 15

Holy Spider

Director: Ali Abbasi Starring: Mehdi Bajestani, Zar Amir Ebrahimi, Arash Ashtiani, Forouzan Jamshidnejad rrrrr

Between 2000 and 2001, a man named Saeed Hanaei killed 16 sex workers, dumping their bodies along the river of Iran’s holiest city, Mashhad, where the shrine of Imam Reza resides. It is in this space between the sacred and profane, public morality and private horror, that Ali Abbasi’s Holy Spider prowls. The Iranian-Danish director returns with his first Persian-language feature, a slasher procedural that vibrates with righteous anger at the daily violence of women’s lives under the Iranian state.

Despite its clinical, Fincheresque aesthetic, Holy Spider is largely guided by this kind of desperate emotion, with all the depth – and messiness – that implies. The murders are shown in garish detail, while

the contexts that led to a man’s religious crusade to cleanse the streets of his city – the hypocrisies of the Islamic regime, the legacies of the Iran-Iraq war, the systemic disempowerment of women – are thrust pell-mell into every scene. What Holy Spider depicts is chilling, but it also relies too much on the very violence it critiques, leading to a curious sense of desensitisation.

Yet there is an unflinching quality to Abbasi’s filmmaking – Holy Spider was produced in Europe and filmed in Jordan, bypassing Iran’s censorship laws – that captures the visceral reality of women’s inescapable embodiment: sanitary towels stuffed in bags, a knife in a pocket, a black chador wrapped over everything. Following months of protests in Iran, Holy Spider feels like it hits harder now; although perhaps it shouldn’t. It is a decades-old story, in every possible way. [Anahit Behrooz]

Released 20 Jan by MUBI; certificate 18

Enys Men

Alcarràs Holy Spider Tár

Book Reviews

Miss Major Speaks: The Life and Legacy of a Black Trans Revolutionary

By Miss Major and Toshio Meronek rrrrr

There is something to the argument that the best memoirs, unlike the best meals, should leave you wanting that little bit more. Miss Major Speaks: The Life and Legacy of a Black Trans Revolutionary cuts across the personal and the political to offer a slice of reflection derived from Major’s many years on the frontline of community organising and HIV/AIDS care work. But this is no rulebook: Chicago South Sideborn Major has certainly lived a life that has served many lessons – on the preconditions of survival, on the folly of corporate endorsements and establishment co-signs, and on the promise of the commons – but here on the page, she rebuffs symmetry and simple answers for something less resolute and altogether richer. This is not a memoir that holds its subject at a remove, however. The amusement parks of 1960s Chicago, the streets of 1970s New York City, the psychiatric wards of Bellevue Hospital and the solitary wing of Clinton Correctional Facility –the sites and scenes that raised Major, as well as the institutions that endeavoured to break her down – are all recollected vividly, albeit with some abbreviation. Ultimately, as has been the case throughout her life, Major’s pronouncements situate her as a relational figure. And when a figure such as Major speaks, you cannot help but eat each and every single word up. [Tara Okeke]

The Book of Desire

By Meena Kandasamy rrrrr

The Book of Desire, Meena Kandasamy’s translation of the love poetry found in the seminal Tamil text the Tirukkuṟal, shares a surprising amount of DNA with Emily Wilson’s recent ground-breaking translation of The Odyssey. It is a strange comparison, perhaps; the two texts, after all, have little in common, although they have finally, after millennia, both been translated by women. But Kandasamy’s rendering, like Wilson’s before her, is striking in how it understands translation as an act of intervention, that demands a strident political and aesthetic positionality. Wilson gave us a Greek epic that spoke to the female silences in the original; Kandasamy’s frank, yearning prose contains a decolonial urgency that undoes the historic erasures of the Tamil language, tackling Hindu nationalism and British Empire and reclaiming the beauty and lust of language as an expression of vivacity.

In rearticulating the longings of the lovers, both male and female, in the original, Kandasamy recovers the Tamil woman from centuries of the male canonical gaze, giving her both textual and paratextual authority. In Kandasamy’s hands, desire becomes a kind of illness, an overwhelming bodily surrender; and yet, Kandasamy draws out a force to the Tirukkuṟal’s ancient lovers – desire operating not as lack of agency, but as willing subsumption. There is an erotics, Kandasamy tells us, to that kind of eager capitulation, to the need to parse the headiness of such madness. [Anahit Behrooz]

The End of Nightwork

By Aidan Cottrell-Boyce rrrrr

Pol – the protagonist of Aidan Cottrell-Boyce’s The End of Nightwork and sufferer of a hormonal disorder – ages erratically. Told to his son in second person, his story of life with his wife Caroline – “your” mother – would be a fairly recognisable one (for all the ambivalence that such a word implies) were it not for its esoteric poles. At one end, Pol’s condition; at the other, his obsession with the writings of English Civil War Puritan Bartholomew Playfere. Civil and cultural unrest preoccupies Pol, and manages to mirror a fixation no doubt familiar to most of us: our ever-changing relationships with our appearance. A body, like land, is left marked by trauma, by the unrelenting passage of time.

Buried in Pol’s ultra-rare illness is a metaphor for the stru le to mature “appropriately”. At 13, Pol looks 23. What would it mean to “act his age?” And when he looks 70 by age 34, should he resent his wife’s lack of desire? Cottrell-Boyce’s debut is witty to the point of masking its own heft. Testament to the quality of the prose is how lines of seemingly little consequence can resonate unexpectedly. Take this one, an observation about humans and snakes’ shared hormones that is purely factual, yet dripping in subtext: “We shed our skin too. We just do it more slowly.” The End of Nightwork’s entire thesis is hidden in such axioms. [Louis Cammell]

The Things We Do To Our Friends

By Heather Darwent rrrrr

Heather Darwent’s debut, The Things We Do To Our Friends, seems to have all the components of the next literary sensation: a hint of dark academia, a morally complex and unpredictable narrator, the promise of feminist themes and an atmospheric setting vivid enough to feel like another character – Edinburgh, no less.

The premise is immediately compelling: Clare arrives at the University of Edinburgh with a secret and a desperate hope to find the right friends who will help her reinvent herself. Soon she meets The Shiver, a privileged and ambitious clique that promises everything she has ever wanted, no matter the cost. Darwent keeps a sense of suspense from the very first to the very last page through clever pacing, constantly dropping shocking revelations and raising new unanswered questions throughout the novel. Clare’s voice offers a deliciously dark perspective that is hard to resist.

The book’s weakness, however, lies precisely on its pretence to have it all, and the lack of commitment to a theme and a unified story that results from it. Perhaps borrowing too much from popular media, some elements feel gratuitous past their marketing value: the academia scenery contributes very little to the narrative and the promised feminist politics are nowhere to be found. Despite this, however, The Things We Do To Our Friends is a thrilling debut, difficult to put down and wonderfully twisted.

[Venezia Castro]

Galley Be ar Press, 12 Jan

Dream Gig

New Comedian of the Year Finalist and a regular of the Best in Class showcase, Hannah Platt lays down her perfect gig

Ilove gigs. I love being on a crowded train for three hours to die on my hole in front of a crowd of toby jugs who assume I’m raising money for Samaritans. But they can’t all be winners. Some of them make me feel good about myself, which is NOT why I got into comedy.

One such disaster was opening for Kiri Pritchard-McClean in Liverpool last year. Kiri’s tour support is, genuinely, always a dream gig, and I come away feeling the best version of myself. This specific date was special because it was in my hometown, and my mum was coming to watch for the first time.

I’d really curated my mum’s experience – in the same way you put your most interesting books on display when you think you might pull. She’d had a drink (everything’s funnier), it was in Liverpool (she won’t travel further than the IKEA in Warrington), and I’d sent a frantic text saying “anything I say is just a joke!!”. I hoped even if she hated it, she’d see all Kiri’s fans, and think “Well, I don’t get it, but these women in sequins are laughing.”

I was the first person in my family to go to uni and I’ve always worried my Mum thought pursuing comedy was a waste. But after that gig I felt like I was suddenly validated. I felt like Mum finally ‘got’ me. All it took was spouting my feelings to a theatre full of people (provided I couldn’t see her).

My dream gig would be a gala, purely because the word makes me feel like one of the Real Housewives. We’d hold it at burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese’s house, which is exactly what you might expect from someone who luxuriates in a giant champagne glass for a living – feathered walls, stuffed leopards, ornate chaise lounges (there’s nowhere comfortable to sit, have a day off Dita, jeeze) – so if anyone gets bored there’s plenty to look at.

The bill is long because I’ve decided to stick myself on, only so I don’t have the anxiety that everyone’s thinking “why is SHE here?” (a classic). MC for the night would be Bob the Drag Queen. I love drag, but what I love about Bob is that they’re just a great comedian and would still be my pick for MC, sans wig and lashes. I’d also have YouTuber Trisha Paytas – but not

current Trisha, who’s transitioned to ‘mommy vlo er’ – I’d have crying on the kitchen floor, “I came out as a chicken nu et because that was my truth at the time”-era Trish. When I feel low I watch her unedited videos where she wonders if dogs have brains, exposes her fake relationship with a cardboard cutout, and silently tries for ten minutes to pierce a Capri-Sun with a straw, before giving up and sucking the juice out the bag. She’s done some questionable stuff but I’m obsessed. Plus I think a set from one of the original internet trolls would be… something.

I find nothing funnier than a rock star who has utter contempt for their fans, only matched by documentaries about said rock stars believing they’re the second coming of Christ. So of course on my dream gig lineup I’d have Anton Newcombe, lead vocalist of The Brian Jonestown Massacre and subject of documentary Dig!, which tracks the rivalries of BJM and The Dandy Warhols, as one scores a Vodafone advert, and the other unravels from a bruised ego at their friend’s successes. Newcombe would likely hate the gig, hate the venue and hate me – I’d love it.

It can’t be my dream gig if Dylan Moran, Fern Brady, Liam Williams and Richard Gadd aren’t on the bill. These are the comedians that made me want to do comedy, do better at comedy, and want to quit comedy (I haven’t quit comedy –please come to my show). I really admire comics who are completely and unapologetically themselves, with the kind of act that wouldn’t make sense from anyone else. I’d also bring Michael J. Dolan out of retirement. As someone who was a crotchety old man since they were nine, I love Dolan’s nihilism, and I need a mate there to make eye contact with when Trisha asks who invented gravity. Afterwards we can have a party in Dita’s kitchen – it’s pink.

Hannah Platt: Work in Progress, Monkey Barrel Comedy, 14 Jan, 6pm, £7

@hannahtheplatt on Twitter and Instagram

BBC

Illustration: Monika Stachowiak

— Listings

Glasgow Music

Tue 03 Jan

COWBOY HUNTERS (BLOW UP DOGS + LUCID HOUNDS)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Punk rock from Edinburgh.

Wed 04 Jan

PINK LIMIT (SAN JOSE + VIGILANTI + THETA)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Rock from Glasgow.

Thu 05 Jan

THE NOTIONS (FLAIR + VERCES + RAIN TOWN) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie rock from Scotland.

FLORIST MONO, 20:00–22:00 Indie folk from Brooklyn.

RED VANILLA (SAINT SAPPHO + STUFFED ANIMALS) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Alt rock from Dundee.

Fri 06 Jan

NEW TOWN (RODEO CLUB + ONE NINE EIGHT + THE ACCOLADES)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie rock from the UK.

THE UNDERSEA BROADCAST, 19:30–22:00 Indie from the UK.

ROISIN MCCARNEY (PHILOMENAH + JASMIN JET)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Singer-songwriter from Glasgow.

Sat 07 Jan

PINC WAFER (BANDIT COUNTRY + ISABELLA STRANGE + WINE MOMS)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie rock from Glasgow.

BIKINI BODY (WATER MACHINE + JOCK FOX) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Punk from Edinburgh.

Listings

Looking for something to do? Well you’re in the right place! Find listings below for the month ahead across Music, Clubs, Theatre, Comedy and Art in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee. To find out how to submit listings, head to theskinny.co.uk/listings

Sun 08 Jan

PRETTY PREACHERS CLUB (DIANE WALKER + SOPHIE WOOD)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Bedroom pop from Glasgow.

BRITISH LION THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Hard rock from the UK.

SAM SHACKLETON (ADAM THOM + THE WILLOWS) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Folk from Scotland.

Mon 09 Jan

ADELINE UM (ALANNAH MOAR + WATTERS) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Indie pop from the UK.

Tue 10 Jan

WALLOWS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Indie from LA.

UR.FRND (PIPPA BLUNDELL + ZAK YOUNGER BANKS) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00 Indie from the UK.

Wed 11 Jan

HAPPYDAZE (WRTHLESS + ALPHA SIGNAL + GLORIOUS FAILURE) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Pop punk from Edinburgh.

ANIMALS AS LEADERS (ALLUVIAL + ALLT)

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00

Prog metal from DC. EXTRA LIFE THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00 Experimental from Brooklyn.

Thu 12 Jan

TRIVIUM

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 17:30–22:00

Heavy metal from Florida. STARSKY-RAE (STOCK MANAGER + PHARMACY HOUSE + SISTER MADDS) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Scotland.

MORNING MIDNIGHT SWG3 19:00–22:00

Indie folk from Glasgow.

GUS HARROWER

BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00

Singer-songwriter from Edinburgh.

MAJESTY PALM (FRIGHT YEARS + HOLLY J)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Pop from Glasgow.

Fri 13 Jan

THE RAH’S (THE SANKARAS + CHERRY + BLETHER) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Scotland. JOESEF MONO, 20:00–22:00

Indie pop from Scotland.

SHADOW OF INTENT CATHOUSE, 19:00–22:00

Deathcore from the US.

MEGAN BLACK

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Pop rock from Scotland.

Sat 14 Jan

STRAID (PANDAS + STATIC + SHEP) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Glasgow.

BIG JOANIE MONO, 20:00–22:00

Punk from London.

DUMB INSTRUMENT (JIM MCATEER + PAUL TASKER)

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Scotland.

THE WIFE GUYS OF REDDIT (RACECAR + AVOCADO HEARTS) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Indie rock from Glasgow.

Sun 15 Jan

FERESTER (URSULA JANE + SHAY + SARA RAE)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie rock from the UK.

POSABLE ACTION FIGURES (VANSLEEP + SOAPEATER)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Rock from Scotland.

Mon 16 Jan

THE RAEBURN BROTHERS (SO -SO DISCO + MAXWELL WEAVER AND THE FIG LEAVES)

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Rock from Edinburgh.

Tue 17 Jan

KANE BROWN O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00

Country from the US. DROPKICK MURPHYS THE OVO HYDRO, 18:30–22:00

Celtic punk from the US. THE CRAZY RAY THE RUM SHACK, 19:30–22:00

Jazz from the US.

STEPHEN DURKAN AND THE ACID COMMUNE (EASY PEELERS + UNCLE KID) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Experimental from Glasgow.

Wed 18 Jan

MATTHEW HALL (NAOMI MUNN + BECKI RUTHERFORD + JAMIE RAFFERTY ) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from the UK.

DANCE GAVIN DANCE (CASKETS + EIDOLA) THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00

Rock from California.

MADDERAM BROADCAST, 19:30–22:00 Trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

SLEEP TOKEN BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Rock from London.

GIRLS JUST WANNA SHOWCASE THE HUG AND PINT, 19:00–22:00

Eclectic lineup.

Thu 19 Jan

HER PICTURE (OWAN + OH ROMANCE + L-PLATE) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Scotland.

JOE PUG BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00 Singer-songwriter from Scotland.

CELTIC CONNECTIONS 30TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Eclectic lineup. Part of Celtic Connections.

FRANCIS DUNNERY ST LUKE’S, 19:00–22:00 Singer-songwriter from the UK.

THE 1975 THE OVO HYDRO, 18:30–22:00

Pop rock from the UK.

RACHAEL DADD

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Bristol. Part of Celtic Connections.

Fri 20 Jan

BAB L'BLUZ + SÍOMHA ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00

Folk from Morocco. Part of Celtic Connections.

LLOYDS HOUSE (JUNK PUPS + MILANGE + DILLON SQUIRE) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Glasgow. TALISK SWG3, 19:00–22:00

Neo-trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

TRIO DA KALI

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Mande and soul from Mali. Part of Celtic Connections.

SIERRA HULL & JUSTIN MOSES WITH RACHEL BAIMAN GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00

Folk from Nashville. Part of Celtic Connections. VANIVES (KITTI) ST LUKE’S, 19:00–22:00

Hip-hop from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

LEWIS MCLAUGHLIN

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, 19:30–22:00

Indie from Edinburgh. Part of Celtic Connections.

CLR THEORY

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Indie folk from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

KATE BOLLINGER THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Virginia.

Sat 21 Jan

THE POOZIES + FRAS ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00

Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

JULIETTE LEMOINE + MATT CARMICHAEL + FERGUS MCCREADIE + CHARLIE STEWART CITY HALLS, 17:00–22:00

Instrumental from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

ORCHESTRAL QAWWALI CITY HALLS, 19:30–22:00

Orchestral from India. Part of Celtic Connections.

ROSIE H SULLIVAN (ANORAK + GRAYLING + SHORTHOUSE)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie from the Isle of Lewis. MARUJA BROADCAST, 19:30–22:00 Indie from Manchester.

VIAGRA BOYS BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Rock from Sweden.

GELATINE (MIDDLE CLASS GUILT + KILGOUR + LAS ACUARELAS) THE FLYING DUCK, 19:00–22:00

Psych from Glasgow.

TREACHEROUS ORCHESTRA OLD FRUITMARKET GLASGOW, 20:00–22:00 Trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

PEAT & DIESEL (MOONLIGHT BENJAMIN) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Folk from Stornoway. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE LONESOME ACE STRINGBAND (THE MAGPIES) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00 Americana from Toronto. Part of Celtic Connections.

NOTIFY (THE CANNY BAND) ST LUKE’S, 19:30–22:00 Folk from Ireland. Part of Celtic Connections.

NAKUL KRISHNAMURTHY THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Indian classical from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

GRANT-LEE PHILLIPS (NEEV) DRYGATE BREWING CO., 19:30–22:00

Singer-songwriter from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

FLO PERLIN + FERN MADDIE THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00 Folk from London. Part of Celtic Connections.

Sun 22 Jan

COLONEL MUSTARD & THE DIJON 5 ORAN MOR, 14:00–22:00 Indie from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

BRYAN GEAR + VIOLET TULLOCH CITY HALLS, 17:00–22:00 Folk from Shetland. Part of Celtic Connections.

ROBIN ASHCROFT (BROOKE GALLAGHER + KATIE NICOLL + EVE DAVIDSON) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Singer-songwriter from Glasgow. HEILUNG BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00 Folk from Europe.

PENGUIN CAFÉ (MISHRA) OLD FRUITMARKET GLASGOW, 20:00–22:00 Chamber jazz from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

ROAMING ROOTS

REVUE GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Eclectic lineup. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE HACKLES DRYGATE BREWING CO., 19:30–22:00 Americana from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

JOSEF AKIN THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00 Jazz and afrobeat from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

Mon 23 Jan

PVRIS

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Pop rock from the US.

CRYPTIC SHIFT (INHUMAN NATURE) THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Metal from Leeds.

LUCINDA WILLIAMS (L.A. EDWARDS) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Blues rock from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

Tue 24 Jan

THE FILTHY TONGUES

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00 Folk rock from Edinburgh. Part of Celtic Connections.

ROBYN STAPLETON + CLAIRE HASTINGS

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 13:30–22:00 Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

LEWIS CAPALDI

THE OVO HYDRO, 18:30–22:00 Pop from Scotland.

OLD SEA BRIGADE THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Indie folk from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

Wed 25 Jan

MATTHEW AND THE ATLAS ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00 Folk rock from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

EVERYTHING BRIGHTER (GIRLS. SPEAK.FRENCH + NETHANY NELSON + CHERRY RED) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie from the UK. WSTRN SWG3 19:00–22:00 R’n’B from London. THE DELGADOS BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Indie rock from Glasgow. MALCOLM MACWATT THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Americana from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

CHARM OF FINCHES (TWELFTH DAY ) DRYGATE BREWING CO., 19:30–22:00

Indie folk from Melbourne. Part of Celtic Connections.

POLLY PAULUSMA (MICHAEL MCGOVERN + THE ORANGE TREES) THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Cambridge. Part of Celtic Connections.

Thu 26 Jan

DEAN OWENS & THE SINNERS + KIRSTEN ADAMSON

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00 Folk and Americana from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

SWISS PORTRAIT ( YOUTH FOR SALE + PEDALO + KUBA)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Indie from Edinburgh.

DIRTY HONEY

SWG3, 19:00–22:00 Hard rock from California.

BLACK FLAG

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Punk rock from California. CELTIC ODYSSEE (FARA)

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Trad from Europe. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE ROSS COUPER BAND (ISLA RATCLIFF + THOMAS/FAURE)

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00 Trad from Shetland. Part of Celtic Connections.

SIOBHAN MILLER (GNOSS) ST LUKE’S, 19:30–22:00 Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE COALTOWN DAISIES

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00 Americana from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

TOM BRIGHT THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00 Folk from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

Fri 27 Jan

VALTOS + PROJECT SMOK + KAOLILA ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00 Neo-trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

KESHI O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 R’n’B from the US.

BRONTES (BRETA KENNEDY + BOTTLE ROCKETS + TINA SANDWICH) KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00 Indie rock from Glasgow.

LS DUNES

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Rock from the US.

PARTY CANNON (GODEATER)

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Metal from Scotland.

THIS FEELING (DICTATOR + FRIGHT YEARS + USUAL AFFAIRS + THE WITS + PG CIARLETTA) BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00 Eclectic lineup.

TOM MCGUIRE & THE BRASSHOLES BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Funk soul from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

UNDEATH (CELESTIAL SANCTUARY + COFFIN MULCH + DEMONSTRATION OF POWER) THE FLYING DUCK, 19:00–22:00 Death metal/hardcore from the US.

ÍMAR (NDIAZ + FULLSET)

OLD FRUITMARKET GLASGOW, 20:00–22:00 Eclectic lineup. Part of Celtic Connections.

KRIS DREVER GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

DERVISH (BREABACH) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Folk from Ireland. Part of Celtic Connections.

CATRIONA PRICE (HERT + CERYS HAFANA)

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00

Folk from Orkney. Part of Celtic Connections.

RISE KAGONA + DIWAN + CHIEF CHEB ST LUKE’S, 19:30–22:00

Rock and afrobeats. Part of Celtic Connections.

CALLUM EASTER

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, 19:30–22:00

Singer-songwriter from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE DEEP BLUE THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Indie from Manchester. Part of Celtic Connections.

Sat 28 Jan

SAM KELLY & THE LOST BOYS + AINSLEY HAMILL BAND

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00

Folk from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

DÀIMH (KARAN CASEY )

CITY HALLS, 19:30–22:00

Trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

MARK SHARP & THE BICYCLE THIEVES (PG CIARLETTA + BEN WALKER)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Rock from West Lothian.

ANCHOR LANE

THE GARAGE GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Rock from the UK.

FROM THE JAM (BUZZCOCKS)

BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Punk rock from the UK.

LE VENT DU NORD

OLD FRUITMARKET GLASGOW, 20:00–22:00 Folk from Canada. Part of Celtic Connections.

CARA DILLON (VRI) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00 Trad from Wales. Part of Celtic Connections.

CEÓL IS CRAIC: AN DANNSA DUB + FLEUVES

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, 19:30–22:00

Folk and trad from Scotland and Brittany. Part of Celtic Connections.

ELAINE LENNON’S HOMEBIRD SESSIONS + CAROL LAULA

THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Singer-songwriter from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

JASON WILSON’S ASHARA (THE LANGAN BAND) DRYGATE BREWING CO., 19:30–22:00

Reggae from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

Sun 29 Jan

LEE FIELDS + JAMES HUNTER + JALEN N'GONDA

ORAN MOR, 19:00–22:00

Americana and blues from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

NICKEL CREEK (LAU NOAH) CITY HALLS, 19:30–22:00

Neo-bluegrass from the US. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE SUBWAYS (GAFFA TAPE SANDY + RUN INTO THE NIGHT)

KING TUT’S, 20:30–22:00

Pop rock from the UK.

IMONOLITH (ONCE AWAKE + ASCEND THE HOLLOW) BROADCAST, 19:00–22:00

Hard rock from Canada.

EDITORS

BARROWLANDS, 19:00–22:00

Indie rock from Birmingham.

MALIN LEWIS

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 13:00–15:00

Trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

KATE RUSBY (BLUE ROSE CODE)

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00

Folk from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

ALASDAIR FRASER + NATALIE HAAS (SARAH-JANE SUMMERS + JUHANI SILVOLA)

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00

Eclectic lineup. Part of Celtic Connections.

ROSS AINSLIE + ALI HUTTON TRIO

ST LUKE’S, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

AOIFE O’DONOVAN

CCA: CENTRE FOR CONTEMPORARY ART, 19:30–22:00

Americana from the US.

Part of Celtic Connections.

ROZI PLAIN DRYGATE BREWING CO., 19:30–22:00

Alt indie from London. Part of Celtic Connections.

THE COUNTERFEIT CLUB

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Folk from Edinburgh. Part of Celtic Connections.

KITTI (REBECCA VASMANT (DJ SET) + JOSH MAGUIRE + PAIGE) ROOM 2, 19:00–22:00 Jazz from Scotland.

Mon 30 Jan

CIRCA WAVES

O2 ACADEMY GLASGOW, 19:00–22:00 Indie rock from Liverpool.

NEW RULES SWG3, 18:00–22:00

Pop from the UK and Ireland.

FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM BROADCAST 19:00–22:00

Alt indie from Luxembourg.

ELIZA CARTHY & THE RESTITUTION

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00

Folk from the UK. Part of Celtic Connections.

PHIL CUNNINGHAM: BEYOND THE FARTHER SHORE (SESSION A9) GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00

Instrumental from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

AVALANCHE KAITO THE GLAD CAFE, 19:30–22:00

Post-punk from Brussels. Part of Celtic Connections. BLACK STONE CHERRY (THE DARKNESS)

THE OVO HYDRO, 18:00–22:00 Rock from the US.

Tue 31 Jan

METRIC SWG3 19:00–22:00

Synth pop from Toronto.

JOSIE DUNCAN + OWEN SINCLAIR

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 13:30–22:00

Folk from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

CHERISH THE LADIES GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 19:30–22:00

Trad from Ireland. Part of Celtic Connections.

JOHN CARTY & MICHAEL MCGOLDRICK (RYAN YOUNG & SARAH MARKEY )

GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL, 20:00–22:00

Trad from Scotland. Part of Celtic Connections.

BROKEN CHANTER

THE HUG AND PINT, 19:30–22:00

Pop from Glasgow. Part of Celtic Connections.

Edinburgh Music

Wed 11 Jan

HARRY MILESWATSON & THE UNION (RADING GLANCES + WORKING CLASS ARTISTS)

SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Folk from Edinburgh.

Thu 12 Jan

BUTTERFLY BRAIN (RONA ROBERTS + DANNY MENZIES) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Punk from Edinburgh.

Fri 13 Jan

AMATEUR CULT (MIDI PAUL + ANDREW J BROOKES) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Post-punk from Edinburgh.

Sat 14 Jan

WUKASA SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Alternative from Edinburgh.

Sun 15 Jan

MEHMET ATLI WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00

Kurdish music lineup.

Thu 19 Jan

KULA SHAKER

THE LIQUID ROOM, 19:00–22:00

Psych rock from the UK.

Sat 21 Jan

THE SCARAMANGA SIX BANNERMANS, 19:30–22:00

Rock from Huddersfield.

SUNSTINGER ( T-A +

THE CASTROS) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Shoegaze from Scotland.

THE JOY HOTEL THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00

Alt rock from Glasgow.

Tue 24 Jan

THE REAL MCKENZIES BANNERMANS, 19:30–22:00

Celtic punk from Canada.

SEQUENCE WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00

Jazz from Scotland.

MC BLANCE (JAMES KENNEDY ) SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Rap from Edinburgh.

Wed 25 Jan

THE REAL MCKENZIES BANNERMANS, 19:30–22:00

Celtic punk from Canada. THE BUG CLUB THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:00–22:00 Indie from Wales.

HOLDING ABSENCE THE MASH HOUSE, 19:00–22:00 Post-hardcore from Wales.

Thu 26 Jan

GERRY JABLONSKI AND THE ELECTRIC BAND

THE VOODOO ROOMS, 19:30–22:00

Blues from the UK.

THE NEW ROUTINES SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00

Alternative from Aberdeen.

Fri 27 Jan

FROM THE JAM (BUZZCOCKS)

THE QUEEN’S HALL, 19:30–22:00

Punk rock from the UK.

Sat 28 Jan

IMONOLITH BANNERMANS, 19:30–22:00

Hard rock from Canada.

A NEW INTERNATIONAL WEE RED BAR, 19:00–22:00

New Romantic from Glasgow.

Sun 29 Jan

TIO RICO (THE GUILLOTINES) BANNERMANS, 19:30–22:00

Punk from Manchester.

Regular Glasgow club nights

The Flying Duck

SUNDAYS

GOLDEN DAYS

Weekly house and techno night for losing yourself in the beats.

The Rum Shack

SATURDAYS (THIRD OF THE MONTH) MOJO WORKIN’ Soul party feat. 60s R&B, motown, northern soul and more!

SATURDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) LOOSEN UP Afro, disco and funtimes with three of the best record collections in Glasgow and beyond.

Sub Club SATURDAYS SUBCULTURE

Long-running house night with residents Harri & Domenic, oft' joined by a carousel of super fresh guests.

FRIDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) RETURN TO MONO SLAM’s monthly Subbie residency sees them joined by some of the biggest names in international techno.

Tue 31 Jan

FRANCIS OF DELIRIUM + SLOW NOON SNEAKY PETE’S, 19:00–22:00 Indie from Luxembourg.

Dundee Music

Sun 15 Jan

JOESEF CHURCH, 19:00–22:00 Indie pop from Scotland.

Thu 26 Jan

THE BUG CLUB BEAT GENERATOR LIVE!, 19:00–22:00 Indie from Wales.

Glasgow Clubs

Fri 06 Jan

RUSH WITH ESMÉ

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00 Techno and acid.

Fri 13 Jan

CURATED WAX WITH KRN

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00 Breakbeat and house.

Sat 14 Jan

VELOZ SWG3, 22:30–03:00 Trance and techno.

Fri 20 Jan

TOMMY HOLOHAN (RARE COLLECTIVE) SWG3 23:00–03:00 Rave and house.

LAST KODIAK

PRESENTS (T/LAW B2B COWBOY + KOPI O + AKKØRD)

THE FLYING DUCK, 23:00–03:00 House and techno.

ALL NITE LONG (JUNGLEHUSSI + CURLACH)

THE BERKELEY SUITE, 23:00–03:00 House and dance.

Cathouse

WEDNESDAYS

CATHOUSE WEDNESDAYS

DJ Jonny soundtracks your Wednesday with all the best pop-punk, rock and Hip-hop.

THURSDAYS UNHOLY

Cathouse's Thursday night rock, metal and punk mash-up.

FRIDAYS CATHOUSE FRIDAYS Screamy, shouty, posthardcore madness to help you shake off a week of stress in true punk style.

SATURDAYS CATHOUSE SATURDAYS Or Caturdays, if you will. Two levels of the loudest, maddest music the DJs can muster; metal, rock and alt on floor one, and punky screamo upstairs.

SUNDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH) HELLBENT

From the fab fierce family that brought you Catty Pride comes Cathouse Rock Club’s new monthly alternative drag show.

SUNDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) FLASHBACK

Pop party anthems and classic cheese from DJ Nicola Walker.

Fri 27 Jan

CHARLIE SPARKS B2B PARFAIT SWG3, 21:00–03:00 Techno. SCHAK SWG3, 23:00–03:00 House and dance. CELESTIAL SWG3, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

Edinburgh Clubs

Fri 06 Jan

PALIDRONE: J WAX, DANSA, PROVOST, RUDI SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

METROPOLIS THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Jungle, footwork and techno.

Sat 07 Jan

LUCKY DIP

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 House and techno.

DAVID BOWIES BIRTHDAY PARTY LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 Pop and disco.

SAMEDIA SHEBEEN

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Latin and Arabic beats. DILF THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 House.

Thu 12 Jan

MANGO LOUNGE & GEORGE IV PRESENT: SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 UK Garage.

Fri 13 Jan

NOOK THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

SUNDAYS (THIRD OF THE MONTH)

CHEERS FOR THIRD SUNDAY

DJ Kelmosh takes you through Mid-Southwestern emo, rock, new metal, nostalgia and 90s and 00s tunes.

SUNDAYS (LAST OF THE MONTH) SLIDE IT IN Classic rock through the ages from DJ Nicola Walker.

The Garage Glasgow MONDAYS

BARE MONDAYS

Lasers, bouncy castles and DJ Gav Somerville spinning out teasers and pleasers. Nice way to kick off the week, no?

TUESDAYS

#TAG TUESDAYS

Indoor hot tubs, inflatables as far as the eye can see and a Twitter feed dedicated to validating your drunk-eyed existence.

WEDNESDAYS

GLITTERED! WEDNESDAYS

DJ Garry Garry Garry in G2 with chart remixes, along with beer pong competitions all night.

THURSDAYS

ELEMENT

Ross MacMillan plays chart, house and anthems with giveaways, bouncy castles and, most importantly, air hockey.

FRIDAYS

FRESH BEAT Dance, chart and remixes in the main hall with Craig Guild, while DJ Nicola Walker keeps things nostalgic in G2 with flashback bangers galore.

SATURDAYS

I LOVE GARAGE Garage by name, but not by musical nature. DJ Darren Donnelly carousels through chart, dance and classics, the Desperados bar is filled with funk, G2 keeps things urban and the Attic gets all indie on you.

SUNDAYS

SESH Twister, beer pong and DJ Ciar McKinley on the ones and twos, serving up chart and remixes through the night.

Sat 14 Jan

REDSTONE PRESS & FRIENDS: LEWIS LOWE

ALL NIGHT SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

KEEP IT STEEL : VALHALLA VIKING METAL PARTY LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 Metal.

CLUB NACHT THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Techno. PARABELLVM THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Electronica.

Wed 18 Jan

NIGHT TUBE

THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00 Club and dance.

Thu 19 Jan SIGNAL SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 House.

Fri 20 Jan

MINISET W/ FARRELL, SKILLIS & FEENA SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

MILE HIGH CLUB V SHELFLIFE

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Underground.

MIGHTY OAK THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Dub.

Sat 21 Jan

CLUB MEDITERRANEO SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 Disco.

DECADE LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 Pop and punk.

OVERGROUND

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Rave.

4TH DIMENSION DANCE THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Trance.

Mon 23 Jan

STAND B-SIDE: DANCE SYSTEM

SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 House from London.

Wed 25 Jan

ANDROMEDA SOUNDS THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00 Club and dance.

Thu 26 Jan

EDINBURGH DISCO LOVERS’ ITALO SPACE ODYSSEY IV WITH ANNA FLEUR + WRISK SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 Disco.

BOLLYNIGHTS LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 Bollywood. CATALOGUE ZERO THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

Fri 27 Jan

DISCOBOX

WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00 Disco and house.

SAINT B*TCH SNEAKY PETE’S, 23:00–03:00 House.

CALL ME MAYBE LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 Pop.

CLUB UPRISING THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Electronica.

NITESHIFT THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

Sat 28 Jan

CAROUSE X TAIS TOI: DJ HEARTSTRING + FRANCK THE BONGO CLUB, 23:00–03:00 Dance and house. IS THIS IT? WEE RED BAR, 23:00–03:00 Indie pop and rock.

TEEN SPIRIT LA BELLE ANGELE, 23:00–03:00 90s rock.

— Listings

PULSE

THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Techno.

THE BIG GREEN THE MASH HOUSE, 23:00–03:00 Electronica.

Sun 29 Jan

WOSP FINALE

LA BELLE ANGELE, 14:00–02:00 Polish party.

Glasgow Comedy

The Glee Club

JIMBO

12 JAN-23 JAN, 7:30PM – 9:00PM

The Queen, The Clown, The Joan Rivers, The icon is bringing their brand new full packed solo show to the UK.

The Stand

Glasgow

AN EVENING WITH VIC DIBITETTO

5 JAN, 8:00PM –10:00PM

He prowls the stage like a Tiger. He holds no hostages. He says what you are thinking but are afraid to say out loud and he's beyond hysterical!

THE BEST OF SCOTTISH COMEDY: BURN’S NIGHT SPECIAL

25 JAN, 8:30PM –10:30PM

The Stand’s flagship contemporary Scottish comedy show returns for Burn’s Night.

OMID DJALILI: THE GOOD TIMES TOUR 29 JAN, 7:30PM –9:00PM

Intelligent, always provocative and entertaining, Omid's legendary stand-up performances is a comedy masterclass.

Edinburgh Comedy

Monkey Barrel Comedy

ROAST BATTLE

17 JAN, 8:00PM –9:30PM

The show that turns smack talk into an art form.

FREYA PARKER: IT AIN’T EASY BEING CHEEKY (WIP) 7 JAN, 8:00PM – 9:00PM

As seen in the sketch show Lazy Susan and The Mash Report, Freya Parker brings a work in progress of her debut hour.

HANNAH PLATT: WORK IN PROGRESS

14 JAN, 6:00PM –7:00PM

BBC New Comedy Awards Finalist Hannah Platt stages her work in progress show.

SAM LAKE: CAKE (LIVE RECORDING)

15 JAN, 5:00PM –6:00PM

Join Sam Lake for the live special recording of his acclaimed debut show.

DANNY BHOY: TOUR PREVIEW

24 JAN, 8:00PM –9:00PM

Globally-renowned Scottish comedian Danny Bhoy previews his new show.

ROBIN MORGAN: SNIP SNIP, BITCH 28 JAN, 8:00PM –9:00PM

Fast-rising comedy star takes on the personal.

The Stand

Edinburgh

FRANKIE BOYLE: WORK IN PROGRESS 30 JAN-31 JAN, 5:00PM – 6:30PM

An in-progress show from the always reliable Frankie Boyle.

STU & GARRY’S IMPROV SHOW

10 JAN, 8:30PM –10:30PM

The Stand’s very own Stu & Garry’s long-running improv show: taking audience suggestions and making comedy gold.

Regular Edinburgh club nights

Cabaret Voltaire

FRIDAYS

FLY CLUB

Edinburgh and Glasgow-straddling night, with a powerhouse of local residents joined by a selection of guest talent.

SATURDAYS PLEASURE Regular Saturday night at Cab Vol, with residents and occasional special guests.

Sneaky Pete’s

MONDAYS MORRISON STREET/STAND B-SIDE/CHAOS IN THE COSMOS/

TAIS-TOI House and techno dunts from some of Edinburgh's best young teams.

TUESDAYS

POPULAR MUSIC

FRIDAYS (SECOND OF THE MONTH) HOT MESS

A night for queer people and their friends.

SATURDAYS (LAST OF THE MONTH)

SOUL JAM Monthly no-holdsbarred, down-anddirty disco.

SUNDAYS POSTAL Weekly Sunday session showcasing the very best of heavy-hitting local talent with some extra special guests.

The Liquid Room

SATURDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH)

REWIND

January 2023

DJs playing music by bands to make you dance: Grace Jones to Neu!, Parquet Courts to Brian Eno, The Clash to Janelle Monáe.

WEDNESDAYS

HEATERS

Heaters presents weekly local crew showdowns, purveying the multifarious mischief that characterises Sneaks' midweek party haven.

THURSDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH)

VOLENS CHORUS Resident DJs with an eclectic, global outlook

Monthly party night celebrating the best in soul, disco, rock and pop with music from the 70s, 80s, 90s and current bangers.

The Hive

MONDAYS

MIXED UP MONDAY Monday-brightening mix of Hip-hop, R'n'B and chart classics, with requests in the back room.

TUESDAYS

TRASH TUESDAY Alternative Tuesday anthems cherry picked from genres of rock, indie, punk, retro and more.

WEDNESDAYS

COOKIE WEDNESDAY 90s and 00s cheesy pop and modern chart anthems.

THURSDAYS HI-SOCIETY THURSDAY Student anthems and bangerz.

FRIDAYS

FLIP FRIDAY Yer all-new Friday at Hive. Cheap entry, inevitably danceable, and novelty-stuffed. Perrrfect.

SATURDAYS BUBBLEGUM Saturday mix of chart and dance, with retro 80s classics thrown in for good measure.

SUNDAYS

SECRET SUNDAY Two rooms of all the chart, cheese and indie-pop you can think of/handle on a Sunday.

Subway Cowgate

MONDAYS TRACKS Blow the cobwebs off the week with a weekly Monday night party with some of Scotland’s biggest and best drag queens.

TUESDAYS TAMAGOTCHI Throwback Tuesdays with non-stop 80s, 90s, 00s tunes.

WEDNESDAYS XO Hip-hop and R'n'B grooves from regulars DJ Beef and DJ Cherry.

THURSDAYS

SLIC More classic Hip-hop and R'n'B dance tunes for the almost end of the week.

FRIDAYS FIT FRIDAYS Chart-topping tunes perfect for an irresistible sing and dance-along.

SATURDAYS SLICE SATURDAY The drinks are easy and the pop is heavy.

SUNDAYS Sunday Service Atone for the week before and the week ahead with non-stop dancing.

The Mash House

SATURDAYS (FIRST OF THE MONTH) SAMEDIA SHEBEEN Joyous global club sounds: think Afrobeat, Latin and Arabic dancehall on repeat.

SATURDAYS (LAST OF THE MONTH) PULSE The best techno DJs sit alongside The Mash House resident Darrell Pulse.

BILLY KIRKWOOD: ENERGETIC 26 JAN, 8:30PM –10:30PM

A Fringe Festival sell-out smash from one of the warmest, wildest, nicest guys in comedy.

SUSAN MORRISON IS HISTORICALLY FUNNY 14 JAN, 2:00PM –4:00PM

Comedy meets history, and it doesn’t always go well.

AN EVENING WITH VIC DIBITETTO 7 JAN, 5:00PM – 7:00PM

He prowls the stage like a Tiger. He holds no hostages. He says what you are thinking but are afraid to say out loud, and he's beyond hysterical!

THE BEST OF SCOTTISH COMEDY: BURN’S NIGHT SPECIAL 25 JAN, 8:30PM –10:30PM

The Stand’s flagship contemporary Scottish comedy show returns for Burn’s Night.

Glasgow Theatre

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER 6 JAN-8 JAN, TIMES VARY

A multi-artform exploration of the world of Lewis Carroll's Alice books.

LEAR/OTHELLO 24 JAN-27 JAN, TIMES VARY

A tragic double-bill.

L'ÉTOILE 28 JAN-3 FEB, 7:15PM – 9:45PM

The Scottish premiere of the opera classic.

The King’s Theatre

THE BODYGUARD 28 JAN-4 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM

A sexy, musical adaptation of the Whitney Houston classic.

Theatre Royal

THE LAVENDER HILL MOB 30 JAN-4 FEB, 7:30PM – 10:00PM

A British classic brought to life by Miles Jupp and Justin Edwards.

Tron Theatre

THE WONDERFUL WIZARD OF OZ 4 JAN-8 JAN, TIMES

VARY

A witty, modern take on the transformatory classic.

Edinburgh Theatre

Festival Theatre

AN INSPECTOR CALLS

31 JAN-4 FEB, 7:30PM –10:00PM

Stephen Daldry's multiaward-winning National Theatre production of JB Priestley's classic thriller.

THE PANTO: SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS 3 JAN-22 JAN, TIMES VARY

A lavish panto classic.

The Edinburgh Playhouse

JERSEY BOYS 24 JAN-4 FEB, 7:30PM –10:00PM

A whirlwind look at the lives behind Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons.

SHEN YUN 11 JAN-12 JAN, 7:30PM – 10:00PM

An epic performance of classical Chinese dance accompanied by a live orchestra.

MY FAIR LADY 2 JAN-7 JAN, TIMES VARY

Time for a loverly production of the classic Pygmalion musical.

BURNS 20 JAN-21 JAN, TIMES VARY

A musical extravaganza telling the history of Scotland’s poet Robert Burns.

The Studio

THE GIFT

3 JAN-4 JAN, TIMES VARY

Family friendly fun about the unexpected joys of giving and receiving.

Traverse Theatre

TAM O'SHANTER, TALES & WHISKY 25 JAN-25 JAN, 8:00PM – 10:00PM

A comic celebration of the Gothic poems of Robert Burns.

Glasgow Art

Glasgow

School of Art CONDITIONS OF CARRIAGE

6 JAN-21 JAN, 10:00AM – 4:30PM

Exhibition documenting two experimental drawing workshops led by Robert McCormack and Council Baby that were staged on the iconic Glasgow SPT subway in 2022.

Glasgow Women’s Library

GATHERING STITCH

2 JAN-4 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A collaborative textile piece created by survivors of sexual violence, placed in conversation with textile work from the library archive.

VANESSA BAIRD: I GET ALONG WITHOUT YOU VERY WELL

2 JAN-25 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A new series of quotidian paintings by one of Norway’s leading contemporary artists.

Regular Glasgow comedy nights

Drygate Brewing Co.

FIRST AND THIRD TUESDAY OF THE MONTH

DRYGATE COMEDY LAB, 7PM

A new material comedy night hosted by Chris Thorburn.

The Stand Glasgow

FIRST MONDAY OF THE MONTH MONDAY NIGHT IMPROV, 20:30

Host Billy Kirkwood and guests act entirely on your suggestions.

TUESDAYS

RED RAW, 20:30

Legendary new material night with up to eight acts.

FRIDAYS

THE FRIDAY SHOW, 20:30

The big weekend show with four comedians.

SATURDAYS

THE SATURDAY SHOW, 20:30

The big weekend show with four comedians.

The Glee Club

FRIDAYS

FRIDAY NIGHT COMEDY, 19:00

The perfect way to end the working week, with four superb stand-up comedians.

SATURDAYS

SATURDAY NIGHT COMEDY, 19:00

An evening of awardwinning comedy, with four superb stand-up comedians that will keep you laughing until Monday.

Regular Edinburgh comedy nights

The Stand Edinburgh Mondays

RED RAW, 20:30

Legendary new material night with up to 8 acts.

Fridays

THE FRIDAY SHOW, 21:00

The big weekend show with four comedians.

Saturdays

THE SATURDAY SHOW (THE EARLY SHOW), 17:00

A slightly earlier performance of the big weekend show with four comedians.

Saturdays

THE SATURDAY SHOW, 20:30

The big weekend show with four comedians.

Monkey Barrel Second and third Tuesday of every month

THE EDINBURGH REVUE, 19:00

The University of Edinburgh's Comedy Society, who put on sketch and stand-up comedy shows every two weeks.

Wednesdays

TOP BANANA, 19:00 Catch the stars of tomorrow today in Monkey Barrel's new act night every Wednesday.

Thursdays

SNEAK PEAK, 19:00 + 21:00

Four acts every Thursday take to the stage to try out new material.

Fridays MONKEY BARREL COMEDY'S BIG FRIDAY SHOW, 19:00/21:00

Monkey Barrel's flagship night of premier stand-up comedy.

Fridays DATING CRAPP, 22:00 Tinder, Bumble, Grindr, Farmers Only...Come and laugh as some of Scotland's best improvisers join forces to perform based off two audience members dating profiles.

Saturdays MONKEY BARREL COMEDY'S BIG SATURDAY SHOW, 17:00/19:00/21:00 Monkey Barrel's flagship night of premier stand-up comedy.

Sundays MONKEY BARREL COMEDY'S BIG SUNDAY SHOW, 19:00/21:00

Monkey Barrel's flagship night of premier stand-up comedy.

GoMA

CLARA URSITTI: AMIK

1 JAN-29 JAN, 11:00AM – 4:00PM

Sculpture, film and scent installation consider ideas of trade and histories of human, animal and botanic migration.

ELIZABETH PRICE: SLOW DANS

27 JAN-14 MAY, 11:00AM – 4:00PM

A moving image work exploring the temporality of industry and labour, and the ongoing legacy of political spaces.

SWG3

CREATIVE RESILIENCE: SCENE BUT NOT HEARD

1 JAN-5 JAN 23, 12:00PM – 6:00PM

Bringing together 26 artists of marginalised genders, this exhibition is a celebration of the creative and political possibilities of street and urban art.

Street Level Photoworks

FUTUREPROOF 2022

1 JAN-29 JAN, TIMES

VARY

Annual exhibition platforming some of the most groundbreaking photography to emerge from art schools, universities and colleges in the past year.

The Briggait

KAYLEIGH SARAH

MCGUINNESS: NEIGHEANAN NAN (THE DAUGHTERS OF)

1 JAN-3 JAN, TIMES

VARY

A new body of work examining processes of being situated in time and space through the materiality of the Scottish landscape.

The Common Guild

ANYWHERE IN THE UNIVERSE

28 JAN-15 JUL, TIMES

VARY

A multi-artist exhibition taking place in locations throughout Glasgow, examining the library as a site of civic and political potential.

The Modern Institute

TONY SWAIN: SIGHT

DESERTED

2 JAN-1 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Phantasmagoric, collagelike paintings that refigure landscape painting to explore ideas of abandonment and decay.

The Modern Institute @ Airds Lane

LUKE FOWLER: BEING IN A PLACE

2 JAN-1 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A subversive documentarian approach to the life and work of author Margaret Tait.

JESSE WINE: BOTH

2 JAN-1 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Fragmented sculptural forms explore the relationship between the physical and psychological within the domestic space.

Tramway

NORMAN GILBERT

1 JAN-5 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A major exhibition of vibrant paintings by seminal Glasgow Southside artist.

IZA TARASEWICZ

1 JAN-29 JAN, TIMES VARY

Working from her farm in Poland, material artist Iza Tarasewicz co-opts rural systems of production to craft installations that entangle cellular, social, agricultural, and celestial interactions.

Edinburgh Art

Arusha Gallery

KIRSTY WHITEN: SHOOKETH

1 JAN-6 JAN, TIMES

VARY Visceral, vulnerable paintings walking the line between the hyperreal and mythic, exploring ideas of healing and emergence.

City Art Centre

GLEAN: EARLY 20TH CENTURY WOMEN

FILMMAKERS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS IN SCOTLAND

1 JAN-12 MAR, TIMES

VARY

Presenting work by 14 pioneering early 20th-century photographers and filmmakers and their relationship with the environments of Scotland.

RON O’DONNELL

: EDINBURGH: A LOST WORLD

1 JAN-5 MAR, TIMES

VARY

Previously unseen photographs from the 60s and 70s by Ron O’Donnell paint an intimate, urban portrait of Edinburgh.

PAUL DUKE: NO RUINED STONE

1 JAN-19 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A photographic series exploring the built environment and its residents at a time of significant urban regeneration and social flux.

AULD REEKIE RETOLD

1 JAN-19 JAN, TIMES

VARY

The results of one of Edinburgh’s most comprehensive archival projects, this exhibition brings together long-hidden objects from the city’s museum collections.

Collective Gallery

KATIE SCHWAB: THE SEEING HANDS

1 JAN-5 MAR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

An interactive exhibition considering ways of exploring and expressing tactility.

KATHERINE

LOCATION

1 JAN-26 FEB, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

A multisensory installation featuring text, handmade paper, found objects, scent, ceramic sculptures and silver casts exploring the Western, Eurocentric frameworks that have been imposed on Hong Kong.

Dovecot Studios

KNITWEAR: CHANEL

TO WESTWOOD

2 JAN-11 MAR, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Bringing together some of the most influential knitwear pieces of the 20th century in a groundbreaking and cosy exhibition.

Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop

ALICE DUDGEON + OISÍN GALLAGHER: LINE DRAWINGS

2 JAN-7 JAN, 11:00AM

– 5:00PM

Sculptural wooden forms informed by the surroundings of the gallery and developed from a series of ink drawings.

Fruitmarket

HAYLEY TOMPKINS:

FAR 1 JAN-29 JAN, 10:00AM

– 7:00PM

A vivid exhibition of new and existing work exploring the sensuous materiality of paint and colour.

ANDREW GANNON

1 JAN-8 JAN, 10:00AM – 7:00PM

A series of increasingly unwearable prostheses created from the artist’s arm that examine current discourses around disability. The exhibition is accompanied by regular live drawing performances.

Open Eye Gallery

PHILIP ARCHER OBE: SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS

13 JAN-4 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Inspired by the landscapes of Le Langhe, Piedmont, this new exhibition explores shifting patterns of light and shade.

Royal Scottish Academy RSA

RSA BARNS- GRAHAM TRAVEL AWARD

14 JAN-1 MAR, TIMES

VARY

A body of work by two of the most recent recipients of the RSA Barns-Graham Travel Award, exhibiting work developed in Marseilles and on the Isle of Eigg.

Scottish National Gallery

IN THE FRAME:

CONSERVING SCOTLAND’S ART

1 JAN-16 APR, TIMES

VARY

An exhibition showcasing the ambitious conservation work taking place at the National Galleries.

TURNER IN JANUARY

1 JAN-31 JAN, TIMES

VARY

The annual display of the National Galleries’ Turner impressive collection.

Scottish National Portrait Gallery

ARTISTS AT WORK 2

1 JAN-12 FEB, 10:00AM

– 5:00PM

An exhibition of painting, sculpture, photography and jewellery created by staff at the National Galleries of Scotland.

Stills

FUTUREPROOF 2022

3 JAN-28 JAN, 12:00PM

– 5:00PM

Platforming emerging photographic talent from across Scotland’s art schools, universities, and colleges.

Summerhall

WONDERLUST

1 JAN-28 FEB, 12:00PM

– 5:30PM

Blown-up, nostalgia-tinged polaroids are given an eerie, haunted feel in this photographic series.

JOHN KINDNESS: THE ODYSSEY

1 JAN-28 FEB, 12:00PM

– 5:30PM

A retelling of the Homeric classic told through the Modernist lens of James Joyce, scattered throughout Summerhall’s rooms.

BOSNIAN WAR POSTERS

1 JAN-15 JAN, 12:00PM

– 5:30PM

A curation of posters and political graphic design produced by individual artists protesting the Bosnian War.

Talbot Rice Gallery

QIU ZHIJIE

2 JAN-18 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Large-scale paintings and topographies exploring developing geopolitical landscapes.

NIRA PEREG

2 JAN-18 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Video installations that explore ideas of ceremony, ritual, and contested political spaces across Israel and Palestine.

LARA FAVARETTO

2 JAN-18 FEB, TIMES

VARY

Large-scale sculptures and installations that investigate the space between destruction and reconstruction, collapse and recovery.

The Scottish Gallery

TEN YEARS OF MODERN MASTERS

7 JAN-28 JAN, TIMES

VARY

The latest in The Scottish Gallery’s modern art series, opening up new conversations on the greatest artists in 20th-century Scottish art.

ALISON DUNLOP: BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH

7 JAN-28 JAN, TIMES

VARY

Vivid, striking interpretations of the landscape draw out its innate musicality.

KATE BLEE: UNPREDICTABLE LIFE

7 JAN-28 JAN, TIMES

VARY

New series of textile works by internationally renowned artist.

JACQUELINE MINA + MICHAEL CARBERRY: FORGING AHEAD

7 JAN-28 JAN, TIMES

VARY Bold, fluid jewellery by two jewellery makers.

ARE YOU SITTING COMFORTABLY?

3 JAN-11 FEB, TIMES

VARY

A series of works on paper celebrating the power of storytelling through art.

Torrance Gallery

WINTER EXHIBITION

3 JAN-14 JAN, 11:00AM – 5:30PM

A bumper winter exhibition showcasing many of the gallery’s regular artists.

Dundee Art

DCA: Dundee

Contemporary Arts

MATTHEW ARTHUR

WILLIAMS: SOON

COME

1 JAN-26 MAR, TIMES

VARY

Newly commissioned film and sound installations reform traditional portraiture by defying erasure and re considering what it means to document the Black queer experience.

The McManus

HIDDEN HISTORIES: EXPLORING EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN DUNDEE’S ART COLLECTION

3 JAN-30 DEC, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Exploring the McManus 20th-century collection through different positionalities, to examine the responsibility of the museum as institution in responding to history.

CASTS AND COPIES

3 JAN-30 SEP, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Examining the artistic and historic significance of copies, fakes, and forgeries.

V&A Dundee

SINCERELY, VALENTINES: FROM POSTCARDS TO GREETINGS CARDS

1 JAN-8 JAN, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Exhibiting an archive by J. Valentine & Sons, Scotland’s pioneering commercial photographers who popularised the holiday postcard on a global scale.

PLASTIC: REMAKING OUR WORLD

1 JAN-5 FEB, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

A dynamic exhibition thinking through the materiality and technological capacities and difficulties of plastic.

KA YI LIU: NEITHER THE WEST NOR THE EAST CAN BE A DETERMINATE

The Skinny On... Joesef

With his debut album, Permanent Damage, out this month, Glasgow’s Joesef takes on our January Q&A

What’s your favourite place to visit?

I love the Spar at my maw’s bit on a Friday night, the atmosphere is electric and everyone’s buzzing buying their cans and fags.

What’s your favourite food?

Is it basic to say bolognese? Only when I make it though; I really will die on the hill of no one’s bolognese being as good as mine.

What’s your favourite colour?

I like the colour the sky goes when it’s really cold and it’s about 4.30pm during winter in Scotland on a clear day. It feels like a heavy blue settling into a burnt orange kinda colour – so beautiful.

Who was your hero growing up?

I didn’t really have many heroes but I was kinda obsessed with the Spice Girls. Even as a wee guy I could feel their power, and as I get older the command they had of the music industry at that time has even more weight to it.

Whose work inspires you now?

I’m really inspired by Douglas Stuart, his novels Shu ie Bain and Young Mungo really resonated with me. I think every queer working class Glaswegian should know his work, it’s such a specific experience that he captures in a really nuanced way.

What three people would you invite to your dinner party and what are you cooking?

George Michael, Wolfgang Tillmans, and Michaela Coel; probably bolognese tbh.

What’s your all time favourite album?

That’s a bit of an impossible question, but right now, since it’s cold and dark, Carole King’s Tapestry. I feel like this album is the definition of a classic. It’s an album I’ve lived with since I was a wee guy and it continues to mean different things to me as I get older. The writing and Carole’s voice just moves me in a way I think is quite rare. I’ll love it forever.

What’s the worst film you’ve ever seen?

Probably House of Wax, it’s a horror and Paris Hilton’s in it, it’s terrible but I feel like it’s high camp – it’s so bad it’s fucking class.

What book would you take to a desert island?

Ocean Vuong – On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous I read it last year and I still think about it a lot.

Who’s the worst?

I’ve never really liked E.T., feel like he caused a lot of trouble then fucked off back to space pretty quickly.

When did you last cry?

I cried reading a book called The Faraway Nearby by Rebecca Solnit. She talks a lot about mortality and her relationship with her mother before and after she started to succumb to Alzheimer’s, among other things. Just got me thinking about the inevitability of life, and my own family and stuff.

What are you most scared of?

Dying suddenly and not getting to say goodbye to anyone.

When did you last vomit?

I was off my face and went a bit too ham hock on the cocktails and I was being sick the day after.

Tell us a secret?

No.

Which celebrity could you take in a fight?

I feel like I could probably take somebody like Eddie Redmayne? He’s so nice and gentlemanly, I could probs deck him. But I’m defo a lover not a fighter.

If you could be reincarnated as an animal, which animal would it be?

Probably a blue whale, I feel like they have such a complex existence I’d like to know what they are thinking about. I like the idea of being so big that no one really bothers you.

Beyond your debut album coming out in January, what else are you most looking forward to in 2023?

Travelling loads and being happy, hopefully. I’d love to see Japan before the year’s out, play a gig there, and go back to America.

Which other Scottish musicians do you think should be on everyone’s radar in 2023?

Theo Bleak, she’s an amazing artist from Dundee, such an amazing writer and she’s such a lovely person too; her new EP’s just out, it’s gorgeous.

Damage is released on 13 Jan via AWAL

joesefjoesefjoesef.com

Permanent

Photo: Nathan Dunphy