Scotland
Deadwater Fell, Channel 4 review - dark murder mystery in a Scottish villageSaturday, 11 January 2020
An idyllic Scottish classroom full of happy children making sponge paintings of flowers with two enthusiastic young teachers – clearly, doom is in the air. Here comes that sense of dread again a little later at a ceilidh in a village hall, with... Read more... |
Traces, Alibi review - pedigree cast battles implausible plotWednesday, 11 December 2019
Alibi is usually your one-stop shop for re-runs of Father Brown or Death in Paradise, so well done them for commissioning this new murder mystery. It comes with a glittering pedigree, having been created by actor-turned-writer Amelia Bullmore (Scott... Read more... |
The Party's Just Beginning review - a formidable debutSaturday, 30 November 2019
For an actor, there are few bigger risks than writing and directing your own film. Securing funding is pretty easy if you’re a household name, like Karen Gillan is, but that doesn’t mean your script is any good or your vision holds water. At their... Read more... |
The Amber Light review - tales, songs and dramsMonday, 25 November 2019
A documentary about celebration, fellowship, and the comforting afterglow of cherished memories. What better way to spend a cold late-Autumn evening? Such is the effect of this charming, low-key investigation into the story of Scotch. Rich with... Read more... |
The Lumineers, SSE Hydro, Glasgow review - a stomping but exhausting nightSaturday, 23 November 2019
There was something fitting about the Lumineers entrance in Glasgow. As “Gimme Shelter” blared around the SSE Hydro, lights pulsating over the crowd, it was drummer Jeremiah Fraites who took the stage and started the opening beat of “Sleep On The... Read more... |
Fontaines DC, SWG3, Glasgow review - Irish rockers let down by shaky soundSaturday, 23 November 2019
Time moves fast in the music business. It has only been a matter of months since Fontaines DC were playing the far smaller confines of King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow, and here they were at a sold out SWG3, celebrating the success of debut album “... Read more... |
CD: Simon Thacker's Ritmata - TàradhSaturday, 23 November 2019
Composer, classical guitarist and ensemble leader Simon Thacker has spent the past decade immersed in distinct musical cultures; from the reinterpretations and reimaginings of the musical traditions of eastern Europe and the Roma people that... Read more... |
Morison, RSNO, Järvi, Usher Hall, Edinburgh review – French romanceSaturday, 02 November 2019
To hear Neeme Järvi conduct the Royal Scottish National Orchestra is to witness one of the great musical partnerships, one that has evolved into an enduring friendship. It was in 1984 that the Estonian Järvi was appointed to succeed Sir Alexander... Read more... |
Bevan, The Sixteen, Genesis Sixteen, Christophers, Barbican review - MacMillan transcends againTuesday, 15 October 2019
Verdi, Elgar, Janáček, John Adams - just four composers who achieved musical transcendence to religious texts as what convention would label non-believers, and so have no need of the "forgiveness" the Fátima zealots pray for their kind in James... Read more... |
Edwyn Collins, Concorde 2, Brighton review - enjoyable evening of tight guitar popFriday, 13 September 2019
In March of this year Edwyn Collins released his ninth studio album, Badbea, his fourth since two life-altering cerebral haemorrhages derailed him in 2005. It’s a vivacious collection that runs the gamut of what guitar pop can be, from acoustic... Read more... |
What Girls Are Made Of, Soho Theatre review - euphoric gig-theatreFriday, 13 September 2019
It’s now Edinburgh Fringe transfer season in London, but here’s one they made earlier: Cora Bissett’s Fringe First-winning autobiographical play from the 2018 Festival about her time in 1990s indie band Darlingheart. Though the broad shape of this... Read more... |
Prom 55: Jephtha, SCO & Chorus, Egarr review - shock of the new in sacrificial oratorioSaturday, 31 August 2019
Human sacrifice has a disconcerting and wonderful effect upon great composers, above all when it involves the supremely queasy issue of a father vowing to offer up his child: think of Britten with Abraham and Isaac, Mozart with Idomeneo and Idamante... Read more... |
