ROAM
Have your passports
ready. (End Iron take you
rnto l dinhurgh Airport for one of the most unusual site specific theatre performances ever seen Ill Scotland.
GLASGOW INTERNATIONAL Contemporary Visual art on show If] lorrnal exhibition spaces; and
outdoor locations; as the
festival moves into Its second year.
FLAMING LIPS With an explosive and totally surreal live act. this; rrresrstrhly odd bunch of New Yorkers; wrll set I drnhurgh's Usher Hall on fire as they wage war With rnystrcs.
EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE FESTIVAL the chance to find out why /()“r~ of Americans; believe Ill angels ls; there really a scientific basis?
The art of darkness
2006 could be one of the toughest ever years in Scotland’s club scene. Henry Northmore talks to some promoters who are up for the fight.
e‘re not going tojoin the ranks and cry 'clubbing‘s dead‘ (again). It will survive in some form. but it is certainly heading for the critical list. There is a definite drop in attendance figures and. more worryingly. there seems to he a dearth ol‘ new ideas. The biggest new movement in Scottish clubbing has been a return to indie discos. though it‘s nothing like the impact drum 8; bass
or electroclash had on the clubbing landscape in their time. In Iidinburgh the threatened closure ot‘ a number To ol‘ venues has made the current climate eventoughen ON ‘There have been Friday and Saturday nights in lidinburgh where there have been (300 ' people out clubbing in the whole city.‘ explains Manga and Bio-Rhythm promoter/DJ (i-Mac (pictured). 'It has probably been the worst October/November period in the IS years I‘ve been promoting. At the moment breaking even is a massive success.‘ It‘s a trend that‘s being echoed in (ilasgow. ‘It‘s been remarkably quiet ol‘ late. pretty much everywhere.‘ says Boom Monk Ben. promoter/DJ at Mixed Bizness and Radio Magnetic. ‘liven the big hitters aren‘t rammed like they used to be. Last year we were consistently getting 400 to 5()() every time. and this year it‘s been about hall‘ that. It‘s been dramatic.‘ With Manga and Mixed Bizness coming to the end of their regular nights. they know what they‘re talking about. Of course. 24 hour drinking laws and smoking bans are bound to have an The
e t‘l‘ect.
proliferation ol‘ cheap cocaine and the decreasing availability ol‘ ecstasy can‘t be ignored. But it seems to go far deeper. ‘()ver a number of years the student population seems to be less and less interested in underground musical genres.‘ says (i-Mac. "There are thousands of people dedicated to dance music who have become so embroiled in the internet that their attitude to music isn‘t the same as previous generations.‘ 'l’eople seem to be going for things they know they‘ll have a good time at and not bothering to speculate on the things they‘ve not heard bet‘ore.‘ says Boom Monk Ben. 'I work in (‘arbon Music and the music that is faltering in the club scene is still as strong as ever in (‘l) sales. It‘s played
TRIPTYCI'I Ihrs triple headed festival takes place In Aberdeen. (ilasgow and ldrnhurgh and features an eclectic range of sounds; from arch electronrca to deep sou!
BIG BIG COUNTRY Now that Bro/(ehack I'vfour‘ta'n has got you lit the mood. get out your Stetsons and spurs and head down to Glasgow ‘5; own ‘estrval ot Arner'cana
havoc with my head and my bank balance.‘
But it‘s not all doom and gloom and (ilasgow seems to be doing better than Iidinbur‘gh. ‘ ’e‘re actually on the increase from last year. In fact. Death Disco had the highest attendance ligures ever last month.‘ says Kirstin Innes ol‘ the Arches. 'But the Arches is a bit of a special case: we‘re an event-based venue.‘
‘At the end ol‘ the day clubs with 3am licences that put on good tunes will always be there.‘ says (i-Mac. "The people who‘ll survive will be the people who do it because they love it and can see the bigger picture even in the hardest times.‘ So remember. even nights like Subculture and Optimo need your continued support. Manga‘s tenth birthday blow out (2| January in lidinburgh and 3 February in (ilasgow) shouldn‘t be missed. Solid Steel should go from strength to strength in lidinburgh and hopefully make its mark on the Glasgow scene and new(ish) nights like Utter Gutter, Sugarbeat and venues like Gig and ABC can only be as good as the crowds who go there. l-‘ortunately. crisis ol‘ten kick—starts a new movement. It‘s time to evolve or die.
Six of the films and their leading lights who will win the hearts of the Academy
activities that followed the massacre of Israeli athletes i at the 1972 Olympics.
BEST DIRECTOR Ang
Lee for Brokeback 5 Mountain He almost gave
BEST FILM Munich I up filmmaking altogether Tipped by many critics to 5 after Hulk. but Lee's be Steven Spielberg‘s best I elegiac Western has film to date. this ensured that his decision dramatises the vigilante I has been a wise one.
‘- Capote Hollywood's most
BEST ACTOR Philip Seymour Hoffman in
recognition he deserves for playing the brilliant but troubled author of In Cold
inspired character actor Blood. will finally get the s BEST ACTRESS
Felicity Huffman in Transamen'ca Better known for her Desperate Housewives persona. Huffman deserves to win every award going for her
BEST
é DOCUMENTARY March
of the Penguins A film
about breeding Antarctican
g Emperors might sound like
f a movie requiring an 18
? certificate, but this epic tale is quite simply a loving
3 documentary of nature at
its most cute. And it‘s
been a hit with Christians
in the States.
performance as a pre— operative male to female transsexual who decides to embark on a life- changing journey.
IS) Jan 2006 THE LIST 19