Alcatraz – live on Sauchiehall Street

May 10, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

A wee bonus gig review for the indominatable Alcatraz who continue to go from strength to strength. The band have been building a head of steam lately with a noteworthy performance early in the day at this years House Guest Fest followed by what looked like an uproariously good night in London where Liv took advantage of her wireless bass to make her way outside mid-song. 

This appearance as part of Sauchiehall Street Music Day was a bonus warm up (maybe the wrong words given Eleanor’s protestations about it being cold onstage…) ahead of their forthcoming headline gig in The Hug and Pint on the 30th,m.… Read the rest

Buzz Cutz – February Albums – Sloan Brothers, Molly Vulpyne Band, The Screamin’ Kick, Heavenly

May 10, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

Despite the best of intentions, 2026 hasn’t panned out the way I’d have wished and so, once again, the Ginger Quiff has taken a back seat. Here are some shorter than normal reviews of some of my favourite albums released in February

Sloan Brothers – Love and Other Diagnoses

I fell in love with the music of Sloan Brothers at the time of their 2022 System Update album, reviewed here, an album which came at me from leftfield and hit me for six. Sometimes you review a band or album and then maybe never listen to it again. System Update isn’t one of those albums, it is one which I revisit time and again, and I’m stoked that Love and Other Diagnoses has come along and does nothing to dampen my ardour for their music, if anything it re-ignites the flame and gives me another set of, sometimes heart-aching, charmingly honest songs to swoon over.… Read the rest

Singles Round Up 2026 – February – Part 2

May 9, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

I’m not going to go into the reasons why this is so late, but I started this such a long time ago now, half of the bands have probably released more music or split up since but hey, as the saying goes, I’ve started, so I’ll finish…

February seems a long time ago and a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then. And as you can see from this second part of the singles for the month, there was a lot to digest including a few new releases from bands who feature on the “You are Here – The New Sound of Scotland” CD (yes, I know… I’m awaiting delivery of said CD, once they are in my grubby mitts they’ll be unleashed on an unsuspecting public….)… Read the rest

Middle Class Guilt – Their King of Comedy – album launch gig – Nice ‘n’ Sleazy

May 9, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

There is a strange dichotomy that exists when I’m dealing with my mental health that means when I get overwhelmed with anxiety and depression, the first things that fall off the radar are the things that bring me joy, keep me grounded and give me a focus. I end up fixating all my energy on negativity, overthinking and becoming selfishly insular and uncommunicative, and I start to spiral and break before I realise what is going on. I’ve really struggled to keep on top of things for probably the last 2 years now, but with some support from therapy which, along the way, opened up some raw wounds but also allowed me to have some closure, I really believe that I’m starting to feel as if for the first time in a long time, I finally recognise who I am and can take back control again.… Read the rest

Bratakus – Hagridden – album review

February 21, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

Hailing from Tomintoul, at one end of one of the most famous routes on Scottish radio weather reports… we’ve all heard that famous phrase “the Cockbridge to Tomintoul Road is closed at the Lecht summit due to snow….”, as Bratakus, sisters Brèagha & Onnagh are one of the villages two most famous exports, the other being its whisky. With this new collection of songs, coming nearly 10 years after their debut album Target Grrrl, these enfant terribles, resplendent on the cover in disturbing horror masks in the guise of their familiar trademark evil baby face band logo, are back with a vengeance and they’ve certainly got someting to say.… Read the rest

Keeley – Girl on the Edge of the World – Album Review

February 17, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

Keeley is a one in a million. An artist the likes of whom you could search the rest of your life for and never find anyone quite like her. She, and her band, is a once in a lifetime find, an artist with such integrity and dedication to her cause, she never strays from her path and is she is laser-focussed on her task at hand. A task in hand that is two-fold.

First and foremost Keeley is a music lover, and a musician’s musician, she has a passion for music that is second to none, with an encyclopaedic knowledge about the music and bands she loves.… Read the rest

Singles Round Up 2026 – February – Part 1

February 15, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

When you take your eye off the ball for a second… I’ve been guilty of ignoring my inbox and my blog of late, I turn away for a couple of weeks and there is a plethora of fantastic new singles from a gamut of bands and styles… This is just the first part of February’s round up, beyond this initial collection, there is another burgeoning list of new singles for February and it is the usual smörgåsbord of sounds from across the globe, with a heavy dose of homegrown talent. Within that homegrown talent in Part 1 there is bona fide music legend Fay Fife in her Countess of Fife guise, and new singles from the likes of Broken Chanter through to newer kids in the block who are making quite an impression on the local scene in the guise of bands like heavyskint and Dallas Love Field.… Read the rest

Buzz Cutz – Amy Duncan, Hen Hoose Collective, M John Henry, The Cribs, The Jack Rubies – January Albums

February 15, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

I don’t make New Years Resolutions, but I did kind if make a mental note that I would try to be kinder to myself in 2026, aim to have a better work/life balance and set aside more time to do the things I enjoy… best laid plans and all that…

You guessed it, despite the best of intentions and promising myself that better work/life balance and to be less critical of myself, it’s only February and already I’ve missed more gigs than I’ve been to, I’m constantly metaphorically self-flagellating and I’ve gone down several dark holes which I’m scrabbling to escape from,it feels a bit like those cartoons where you see the character stuck in a hole and as they start to climb the walls, something happens to knock them back down again.… Read the rest

Friends Again – live at The Old Fruitmarket – Celtic Connections 2026

February 2, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

I went to my first gig in 1986, February 27th to be precise, to see Simple Minds on their Once Upon a Time tour. This means that Friends Again had been and gone like a fleeting shadow before I even thought about going to my first concert…

I was clearly slow on the uptake when it came to gig going (I’ve more than made up for it since) as my second ever gig was to see a certain James Grant & Paul McGeechan in their Love and Money guise play Level 8 in Strathclyde Universities students union in October of ‘86 (with Thrashing Doves supporting according to my notes, for any useless fact fans, a band whose career was probably cut short when the milk snatcher claimed to enjoy the video for their single Beautiful Imbalance on an episode of Saturday Superstore…) I developed an unhealthy obsession for the music of Love and Money the result being they were a band I went on to see too many times to mention over the years, and as such they were my gateway drug to the sublime music of Friends Again, and of course the glorious atmospheric sounds of The Bathers.… Read the rest

Singles Round Up 2026 – January – Part 4

January 29, 2026 By neilho27@sky.com

The final part of this month’s singles round up runs to 21 songs, bringing the total to 57 brilliant new songs for the first month of the year, 23 of these from Scottish bands/artists, a cracking start to the year I’m sure you’ll agree. Part 4 of the singles for January includes new singles from 3 bands that feature on the forthcoming New Sound of Scotland CD namely Cowboy Hunters, Vanderlye and The Froobz, and with Oedipus and the Mama’s Boys being on Part 3 of the round up, it’s already stacking up to be a great year for new music from the bands on the CD, the next couple of months are shaping up well with singles on the way from pedalo, Martha May and the Mondays and Sister Madds to name but 3…

As soon as I get the CDs delivered, I’ll post details on how to get your hands on one… it’ll be a case of when they’re gone, they’re gone…

First up on this part it’s the somewhat eery and menacing Dr Love from Would Be Goods, be well warned by the spookily haunting melody and don’t let the name fool you, this Dr Love is not there to heal you or mend your broken heart, rather he will pull the rug from under you and rip your heart to shreds.… Read the rest

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