Category: Review

bis, Slime City & V.C.O. live in The Rum Shack

February 19, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

The day of this hotly anticipated sold out gig felt like a celebration of all things music related to Glasgow’s southside. An afternoon interviewing the (southside based) band Brenda, who have just announced the pre-orders for their debut album, in southside hostelry The Bell Jar, before moving on to southside venue The Rum Shack for what felt more like a party than a gig, celebrating the music of (southside) Glasgow legends bis.

This was the final date of their 2 date “tour” with Slime City and V.C.O., having played Edinburgh on the Friday night, so the gig was like a homecoming for the local heroes, the venue packed to the rafters with a passionately fervent sold out crowd eagerly awaiting the triumphant trio.… Read the rest

Singles Round Up 2023 – Pt 1 – January 2023

February 10, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

So much for my plan of being better organised into 2023, Can’t believe we’re nearly 2 weeks into February and I’m still lagging behind…

Anyway, what follows is a list of the songs that have been soundtracking my January, some from the end of December too seeing as how I was TOO organised in December and published my December singles before Christmas…

Ren – Hi Ren

One of the most affecting singles of the end of December/beginning of January is this soul baring song from Ren. Brutally honest about his health struggles the song is a bare knuckle battle between himself and his thoughts, with a sound reminiscent of Eminem and The King Blues, once you press play on the video you will find it utterly impossible to be distracted by anything around you.… Read the rest

New Years Revolution – King Tuts Ft. Brontes, Lemon Drink and Tina Sandwich

January 29, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

This should have been the second New Years Revolution gig I attended in Tuts this January but having unfortunately missed out on Junk Pups and Lloyds House last Friday, I was pulling out the stops to make sure I didn’t miss out again. Like the First Footing gig at the hug and Pint a few weeks ago, this gig was proof positive that the Glasgow music scene is in rude health with so many quality young bands around.

It’s a sign of my age that the kids of two friends are bass players in two of the bands who are bright shining lights in the current Glasgow scene.… Read the rest

Water Machine again… with The Cool Greenhouse and Former Champ

January 22, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

Witnessing Water Machine again came at the end of a week that began with Westminster making an attempt to block the Gender Recognition Reform Bill recently passed by the Scottish Parliament, resulting in loads of Karen’s coming out of the woodwork to express their outrage, literally. I heard a debate on the radio where an atypical Daily Mail reader, called Karen, I shit you not, was having apoplexy live on air, but could not back up the reason for her anger with anything remotely resembling coherent thoughts. The week ended in a show of support for the trans community with a protest at the Concert Hall steps on Buchanan Street against using trans rights as a political football.… Read the rest

Jo Jo and the Teeth album cover

Jo Jo & the Teeth – No More Good News – album review

January 16, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

This album already appeared in my round up review of 2022 as one of my top 30 albums of the year, despite not having posted a review earlier in the year. The album was on heavy rotation towards the end of the 2022 and since the turn of the year, it has been my go to album virtually every day. I can’t get enough of it. No More Good News? While that album title pretty much sums up exactly how I felt about 2022, it certainly doesn’t sum up the music of Jo Jo and the Teeth – the music on this album is ALL Good News.… Read the rest

Bikini Body/Water Machine/Jock Fox/Sacred Noise – First Footing – live in The Hug and Pint

January 8, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

This gig was brought to you by 432 presents. And COWBELLS!

In my world you can never have too many cowbells so this gig felt like cowbell utopia.

All joking aside, the abundance of cowbells that ran throughout most of the bands sets tonight was only a small contributing part of what made this the perfect gig to start my music year off with a bang.

Tonight was the perfect tonic for the January blues. Despite being known as Mr Christmas in some quarters, I didn’t really “feel” Christmas last year, so there wasn’t the usual post Christmas comedown, just a general feeling of malaise and relief that the shitshow of 2022 is now in the past.… Read the rest

Review of the Year – 2022

January 7, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

If I don’t get my arse in gear, it’ll be February before I publish my round up of 2022. To be honest, I’ve still got a (virtual) pile of albums still to review… as a result, some of my favourite records of 2022 will be in the lists but remain unreviewed!

Singles of the Year

I already published my top 15 singles of the year (well actually I published a list of 80 songs…. but my top 15 were as follows:

  • 15 – Dumb Poets – Magic Happens
  • 14 – Dream Wife – Leech
  • 13 – Syvdoh – As I Lay Dying
  • 12 – The Bobby Lees – Monkey Mind
  • 11 – Collars – Baby I’m Bored
  • 10 – Keeley – Shadows on the Hill
  • 9 – His Lordship – All Cranked Up
  • 8 – Brontes – First Hand Arrogance
  • 7 – Jemma Freeman and the Cosmic Something Easy Peelers
  • 6 – Sacred Noise – Part of Me
  • 5 – Junk Pups – Miss Behave
  • 4 – Horsegirl – Anti Glory
  • 3 – Pizza Crunch – Wilting Youth
  • 2 – Water Machine – Hot Real Estate
  • 1 – Monica Queen – What is Home?
… Read the rest

Singles Round up of the Year – 2022

January 2, 2023 By neilho27@sky.com

I published 12 singles round ups for 2022, one per month (OK, so maybe some were slightly delayed…) which amount to a rough total of 350 – 400 songs in total. The fact that I featured the songs meant I liked all the songs in each list, so when I thought – I’ll do a Festive 50 like John Peel used to do, I failed miserably, so here is my Effervescent Eighty, first off, my top 15, then the rest in no particular order…

  1. Monica Queen – Where is Home?
  2. Water Machine -Hot Real Estate
  3. Pizza Crunch – Wilting Youth
  4. Horsegirl – Anti Glory
  5. Junk Pups – Miss Behave
  6. Sacred Noise – Part of Me
  7. Jemma Freeman and the Cosmic Something – Easy Peelers
  8. Brontes – First Hand Arrogance
  9. His Lordship – All Cranked Up
  10. Keeley – Shadows on the Hill
  11. Collars – Baby I’m Bored
  12. The Bobby Lees – Monkey Mind
  13. Syvdoh – As I Lay Dying
  14. Dream Wife -Leech
  15. Dumb Poets – Magic Happens

The rest (in no particular order)

  • Sloan Brothers – Songs Like This
  • Wife Guys of Reddit – Pig Fat
  • Dead Pony – Bullet Farm
  • Bikini Bottoms – The Game
  • Port Sulphur – Kone Trips
  • pMad – Broken
  • Gentle Sinners – Face to Fire (After Nyman)
  • Earl of Hell – Hang ’em High
  • The Kaplans – Get Inside It
  • Jill Lorean – Black Dog
  • Run into the Night – Common Stream of Consciousness
  • Panic Shack – Mannequin Man
  • Savage Cut – The Debt
  • Sister John – Young at Heart/The Bluebells – Glasgow is a Rainbow
  • Trashcan Sinatras – Lay of the Land
  • Bunkhouse – RIP ie
  • Katherine Aly – Hype Up
  • Tallies – Special
  • Spyres – Honestly
  • Butcher Boy – So Far So What
  • HiFi Sean and David McAlmont – The Skin I’m In
  • Dead Thatchers – Nae Pasaran
  • Jo Jo and the Teeth – Don’t Get Too Heavy
  • London Plane – Come Out of the Dark
  • bdrmm – Three
  • Marianne Dissard – When Somebody Thinks You’re Wonderful
  • The Best Bad Influence – Boomstick
  • Vulture Party – Bad Wolf Moon
  • The Courettes – Daydream
  • Deux Furieuses – Bring Down the Government
  • Cloth – Lucid
  • Simon Bromide – Not That Type
  • Scorpio Leisure – Give Us Our Space
  • The Claudettes – Exposure
  • Suede -15 Again
  • Pete Astor- Fine and Dandy
  • Girls in Synthesis – Watch with Mother
  • Lloyds House – Heather
  • Tina Sandwich – Fast Cars (and Movie Stars)
  • Simon Love – L.O.T.H.A.R.I.O.
… Read the rest

The Claudettes – Go Out – album review

December 31, 2022 By neilho27@sky.com

With a title that reflects the long yearned for post pandemic freedom, Chicago’s The Claudettes have once again hit the mother lode with a selection of new songs packed with the extraordinary musicianship I’ve come to expect from Johnny Iguana and co. The ten songs on Go Out pack an hefty emotional punch too, by virtue of the elegantly alluring and impassioned vocal delivery from Berit Ulseth.

Go Out opens in style with a song of unrequited desire and love, the subject of the desirous affection observed from afar. Berit’s wistfully plaintive vocal delivered atop an equally melancholic melody driven by Johnny’s heart-rending piano playing, Michael Caskey and Zach Verdoorn layering gloriously textured instruments to create an incandescently pulsating climax.… Read the rest

23 for ‘23

December 28, 2022 By neilho27@sky.com

I may have made it difficult for myself by starting this last year. I’ll need to come up with one more band, album or gig I’m looking forward to next year. Mind you, judging by the sheer volume of amazing new music that is out there, it shouldn’t be too much of a challenge. So here is my list of music related stuff I’m looking forward to next year so far…

In no particular order, but I’ve got quite an easy place to start.

1. Sacred Noise

One of the bands I’d listed in my 22 for ‘22 are back in for my list of great hopes for 2023.… Read the rest