Radar recommends: 27 Feb - 5 March

[Copy Haho: gigging across Scotland this week]

Plan your gig-going with our pick of the week's finest live music nights...

The best...

James Yorkston & the Athletes, The Phantom Band, Alasdair Roberts Trio, Remember Remember
Saturday @ Platform, Glasgow / 7.30pm / £5 (£3)
Forget those woolly jumper clad men with acoustic guitars. No, folk music's cool these days. Just look at this line-up, where Fence troubadour Yorkston shares a billing with Rock Action upstart Remember Remember.

Futuristic Retro Champions, Skitten, Ace City Racers
Saturday @ The 13th Note, Glasgow / 9pm / £tbc
The 'Champs, who also play Edinburgh this week (see below) launch their new EP at this gig. The CDs are apparently designed to look like coloured vinyl, so it's like retro does retro really. Curious? Read an interview with the band here.

White Noise: Dead Boy Robotics, Futuristic Retro Champions
Wednesday @ Electric Circus, Edinburgh / 8pm / £tbc
Chalk and cheese this one, but none the worse for it. Pulsating shards of electronics and drums from duo DBR, while FRC use synths for more poppy pursuits.

The Mill: Stanley Odd, S.Kay
Thursday @ Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh / 7pm / Free but ticketed
Just this week we lauded Stanley Odd's "thrilling blend of hip hop, indie and funk", and, as if on cue, they appear for a show at The Mill. Are we arbiters of taste or what? (Don't answer that.)

Copy Haho, eagleowl, Debutant
Friday @ Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh / 7pm / £5
Copy Haho also play The Tunnels, Aberdeen on Thursday
Surely the Holy Grail of gig quests this. Why? Not one, not two, but three UtR-featured bands on one bill. So if you don't enjoy at least one then you'd be well within your rights to advise the PCC to shut us down.

John Knox Sex Club
Thursday @ Nice'n'Sleazy, Glasgow / 9pm / £tbc
Thursday's a sexy day, get your best undies on and head to this party. Have a wee read about your saucy hosts here.

Tango in the Attic
Friday @ Harley's Bar, Bathgate / 8pm / £tbc
Tango and Cash + Cash in the Attic = Tango in the Attic. In reality, this Glenrothes band make fun, upbeat indie-pop.

Local Natives, Peggy Sue
Friday @ King Tut's, Glasgow / 8.30pm / £9
Folking rock again (yes, that is a sweary pun - the best sort). Think Fleet Foxes with ADHD, bright and poppy. With Peggy Sue minus the Pirates it seems.

The Unwinding Hours + Holy Mountain, Olympic Swimmers
Friday @ Stereo, Glasgow / 7pm / £7
Amazing Aereogramme offshoot who recently signed to the much admired Chemikal Underground label and featured here a few months ago. A couple of stellar supports including the brilliant Olympic Swimmers, also featured on UtR last year.


The rest...



Words: Aimi Gold, Nick Mitchell

What have we missed? Tell us below, or add it to the calendar by emailing utr.scotsman@gmail.com

Radar recommends: 20 - 26 Nov

[Findo Gask: bringing their own version of Crufts to Sleazy's on Saturday]

If you live in certain parts of the country, venturing out to a gig is probably the last thing on your agenda, nevermind the fact that you'd need to build some kind of Noah's Arc contraption to go anywhere. But for the rest of us, if you don't mind the whipping wind and lashing rain (and living in Scotland you should be used to it by now) here's this week's gig guide...

Aberdeen

The Slipper Room – Mr Choade’s Wild Ride
Monday @ The Tunnels / 8pm / £5
Something a bit different for Aberdeen on a Monday night. The driving force behind the New York Burlesque scene brings a house band made up of members of Belle & Sebastien, the Vaselines and Teenage Fanclub.

Bo Ningen, Amber Pilot, Sarah J Tingle
Wednesday @ The Tunnels / 8pm / £5
Japanese punk rock that The Observer once described as being somewhere between wolves and Nintendo. Supported ably by the quite exciting Amber Pilot and the brilliantly versatile Sarah J Tingle.

Fat Hippy Showcase
Friday @ Café Drummonds / 7.30pm / £3
Local label Fat Hippy put on another night of local talent made up of acts on their roster or who’ve impressed them suitably when using their fine recording studio. Hardest working man in Aberdeen and possessor of a fine voice Nicky Powell headlines with support from Turning 13 and the Marionettes.


Edinburgh

Charity Baw
Saturday @ Roxy Art House / 7pm / £10
Raising more cash for Oxfam, this packed line-up of talent includes The Real Tuesday Weld, Aberfeldy, Withered Hand, The Parsonage, Come On Gang!, Big Ned, Little Eskimos and Benni Hemm Hemm. Radio 1's Vic Galloway, The Pictish Trail, On the Fly and Paul Vickers will be DJing. Optional fancy dress theme: Ball Boys and Belles of the Ball.

Field Music, Snide Rhythms, Epic 26
Sunday @ Sneaky Pete's / 7pm / £6.50
Acclaimed experimental indie from North East England.
Also playing Captain's Rest, Glasgow on Saturday.

Good Shoes, Copy Haho, Jesus H Foxx
Thursday @ Electric Circus / 7pm / £8
Copy Haho are cadging a lift around the UK from this London band in November, and for their Edinburgh show they've booked recent UtR stars Jesus H Foxx.
Also playing King Tuts, Glasgow on Tuesday.

Futuristic Retro Champions, Vendor Defendor, Death Trap City
Friday @ Sneaky Pete's / 7pm / £4
Brighten up your Freitag with indie-pop from the headlining Champs.

Tango in the Attic, Pose Victorious
Friday @ Cabaret Voltaire / 7pm / £5
Upbeat indie-pop in the vein of Vampire Weekend - with Fife accents.

Glasgow

**UtR's gig of the week**
Crufts: Yellow Magic Orchestra Tribute
Saturday @ Nice'n'Sleazy / 7.30pm / £tbc
Findo Gask's residency pays homage to the Japanese act, with sets from UtR favourite Tokyo Knife Attack and Adult Emergency.

Aurora Stands In Snow, Conquering Animal Sound
Saturday @ The 13th Note / 9pm / £tbc
If you missed their early and curtailed Oxjam show, here's a chance to get acquainted with the understated allure of Conquering Animal Sound. Aurora Stands In Snow seem to be kindred spirits, judging by their MySpace.

The Little Kicks
Sunday @ Nice'n'Sleazy / 7.30pm / £tbc
Aberdonian indie-pop band who we recently interviewed on our Oxjam podcast while inebriated.

Burnt Island, Rick Redbeard, The Starlets, Autistic Angus
Thursday @ Captain's Rest / 8pm / £tbc
No, their not a tribute to the Fife seaside town. They're the band fronted by novelist Rodge Glass. Support from Phantom Band singer Rick Redbeard and a mystery act with a very un-PC name.

The Pastels, 1990s, Golden Grrrls
Friday @ King Tuts / 8.30pm / £12.50
Glasgow indie stalwarts bring their twee fare to Tuts.

Words: Nick Mitchell, Andrew Learmonth


What have we missed? Tell us below, or add it to our gig guide by emailing utr.scotsman@gmail.com

Radar recommends: 4 - 10 Oct

[Over the Wall, playing The Skinny's Birthday Party. Image: David Forcier]

In true Scottish style, we seem to have left our damp squib of a summer behind, skipped over autumn and plunged headfirst into the tree-bending winds and Arctic chills of winter.

On the bright side, at least 'fashion scarves' can now serve a practical purpose, and we can all converge at the nearest gig venue to huddle together like penguins and maybe even watch a decent band...


Aberdeen
Sky Larkin, Copy Haho, Marionettes
Monday @ Cafe Drummonds / 8pm / £6
Still promoting their album six months after its release, Leeds band Sky Larkin come to Aberdeen with support from the very tight Stonehaven boys Copy Haho and Killers-like Marionettes.

Cats & Cats & Cats, Greater The Shadow, Katerwaul, Free Korps
Monday @ The Tunnels / 7.30pm / £5
Ahead of the release of their new single Staines band Cats & Cats & Cats travel north with support from the brilliant Aberdeen band Katerwaul, as well as Greater the Shadow and Free Korps in this rather epic line up.

Three Blind Wolves, Washington Irving
Thursday @ Snafu / 10pm / £3/£2
A busy, busy week in Aberdeen with Bloc Party, Turin Brakes and Nerina Pallot but the cool kids will be going to the Dirty Hearts Club to see Ross Clark's newly renamed band play some top class alt-folk.

Dundee
RBRBR, Call To Mind
Thursday @ The Doghouse / 8pm / £5
Edinburgh electro five-piece come to Dundee supported by the rather beautiful sounds of Call To Mind.

Edinburgh
Dizzee Rascal
Sunday @ HMV Picture House / 7pm / £17.50
He's just a rascal, a sell-out rascal.

Indian Red Lopez
Tuesday @ The GRV / 7pm / Free
Aberdonian band with "great tunes, clever lyrics and top class musicianship." According to us.

Cats & Cats & Cats, There Will Be Fireworks, Free Korps
Tuesday @ Cabaret Voltaire / 7pm / £6
Every old spinster's dream scenario are also London indie types, but we're more interested in one of 2009's finest new bands, There Will Be Fireworks.

Mudhoney, The Vaselines, St Deluxe
Friday @ HMV Picture House / 7pm / £17.50
Pretend it's 1992 all over again. And don't say you're too young to remember 1992.

This is Music: Jesus H. Foxx, Boycotts
Friday @ Sneaky Pete's / 8pm / £3
A night of clattering punk-funk and sharp garage rock as these Edinburgh and Glasgow bands go head to head.

Micachu & the Shapes, The Invisible
Saturday @ Sneaky Pete's / 7pm / £6.50
Quirky pop from these mega-hyped Londoners.

Ten Tracks
Saturday @ Electric Circus / 11pm - 3am / £6
Scotland's version of iTunes hosts its own gig night, featuring Popscure and The Vangelis.

Glasgow
The xx
Monday @ The Captain’s Rest / 8pm / Sold out
Gothy, moody, minimal-electro; were you cool enough to buy a ticket in advance? Me neither, wow – you think the hype is unfounded too. We’re so similar.

Sky Larkin, Copy Haho
Tuesday @ Classic Grand (2nd Floor) / 7pm / £7
Can’t think of anything good that comes from Leeds? (Don’t you dare say Chris Moyles.) Meet Sky Larkin, a bit Pretty Girls Make Graves, a lot awesome. With Copy Haho in support the night can only go well.

The Mill: United Fruit, Orko
Thursday @ Oran Mor / 7pm / Free but ticketed
We’re in a recession. This is free. You should go.

Kill it Kid, Sparrow and the Workshop
Thursday @ The Captain’s Rest / 7.30pm / £6
Kill your Thursday by kindly treating it to this combo of Arcade Fire likened headliner and Glasgow based folk-pop support. Also playing Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh on Wednesday.

J. Tillman
Friday @ Nice’n’Sleazy / 9pm / £TBC
Bluesy, soul solo show by one quarter of Fleet Foxes.

Fiery Furnaces, French Wives
Saturday @ Nice’n’Sleazys / 7.30pm / £8.50
Boy/Girl Indie Rock served up on American and Scottish platters.

**UtR's gig of the week**
The Skinny and Ten Tracks Twisted Kids Birthday Party
Saturday @ The Arches / 10pm-3am / £7
A proper celebration; P.A.R.T.Y through to the wee hours with Meursault, The Blessings, Over the Wall, RBRBR and a whole host of DJs.

Words: Aimi Gold, Nick Mitchell, Andrew Learmonth


What have we missed? Tell us below, or add it to our gig guide by emailing utr.scotsman@gmail.com

In pictures: My Latest Novel / Copy Haho / Mitchell Museum

Black Tape, the Edinburgh 'anyone-can-DJ' night, went out with a bang on Friday with sets from three of Scotland's most hotly tipped bands, and we were there with a camera.

Headlining was My Latest Novel, the ambitious Greenock-based band who recently released their second album Deaths and Entrances to wide-spread acclaim.

That alone would have justified the ticket price, but also on the bill were Copy Haho, the frenetic Stonehaven band who have been making UK-sized waves, and Mitchell Museum, the giddily experimental Glaswegians who are no strangers to this blog.

Black Tape regulars will be relieved to know that the people behind the night are launching a new, free monthly clubnight at Sneaky Pete's on Friday 3 July. Details here.

Pictures: Nic Rue (nicrue.carbonmade.com)

On the radar: Copy Haho

As at home in smooth and laidback mode as they are in anthemic and shouty, the range of sounds Copy Haho accommodate is the carefree equivalent of a sleepy Sunday morning with a blast of Saturday night flashback.

Hailing from Stonehaven, these small-town boys do big-time indie pop with an aplomb that belies their modest roots. The four-piece are a welcome boost to Aberdeen's music scene, borne as they are of two current members of project:venhell [PVH].

But where PVH are all screechy axes and electro vocals, Copy Haho tone it down with jangling guitars and a pleasingly dreamlike quality.

Their lilting indie pop draws inevitable comparisons to the scuzz-rock stylings of Pavement, while Joe Hearty's drawling voice rasping out lyrics in unconventional love song 'You Are My Coalmine' (“I'm the dirt on your nails/You're the dirt on mine”) is lyrically reminiscent of The View.

Play: Copy Haho - Pulling Push Ups


New EP 'Bred for Skills & Magic' is out now.

Intrigued? Watch Copy Haho for yourselves at Stereo, Glasgow on 19 May and The Tunnels, Aberdeen on 3 June.

- Kirstyn Smith