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PREVIEW PUNK FOLK FRANK TURNER Oran Mor, Glasgow, Thu 23 Oct
Frank Turner's musical pedigree isn‘t halt puzzling. He used to front British punk rock outfit Million Dead. has a Black Flag tattoo. and claims Iron Maiden are one of his favourite bands. 80 what's he doing these days, musically? Quietly protesting about political evils through the medium of folk. apparently. Real/y? 'lt's no secret that I grew up with heavy music, and I still love it.’ Turner explains. ‘But tastes change as you get older and I've never only listened to that kind of music; that would be pretty sterile.’
The punk roots still run deep. though. and given half the chance to get his foot in the door at Number 10 he‘d ‘quietly celebrate the passing of a political monster. cancel PFI in its entirety. scrap ID cards and start dismantling the database state.‘ Just a few suggestions then.
Fresh off a jaunt round America where he says he enjoyed the weather and ‘discussions of Sarah Palin's hotness‘ in equal measure, Frank Turner's fondly shifting his attention to the upcoming Scottish date. ‘Glasgow has always been linked, in my mind. with Buckfast.’ he admits. ‘I don't mean that negatively either; basically, the first time we went. with Million Dead. none of us had ever heard of it before. and some locals gave us a bottle which we all enjoyed. in a decadent kind of way. We only really twigged the Cultural connotations later. but never let it get in the way of getting lashed onstage.“ (Rebecca Moore)
PREVlEW ROCK NO AGE School of Art, Glasgow, Sat 18 Oct
Reckon DIY is dead? No Age beg to differ. The noisy art punk duo have been kicking up a stink on the LA music scene since 2005, curating exhibitions, designing clothes, booking shows, making films, videos and zines and, most excitingly, coming up with their own gloriously scuzzy, sample-laden musical offerings. Sub Pop debut Nouns captured the attention of hipster musos and esoteric types around the world earlier this year, and word has since spread quickly on the back of some notoriously visceral live shows. None of this, however, would have been possible without The Smell; an all-ages club that became second home to the band, launching their career along with other favourites like HEALTH, Mika Miko and Abe Vigoda.
‘The music is an invitation and a rallying call for individuals to get involved in a community that celebrates art and experimentation,’ guitarist Randy Randall said recently. ‘lt’s DIY on a different scale, an attempt to reacquaint people with the notion that art is a crucial part of everyday life. No Age is more than a band to us,’ he explains. ‘It is an umbrella.’ Tying in with this underground collective spirit, the Shred Yr Face tour, due to make a Scottish pit-stop in Glasgow this month, features a much- anticipated appearance from Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Spunt, who will be playing as part of a stellar line—up including fellow spirited music-makers Times New Viking and Los Campesinos! The show is also one of the inaugural Tennent’s Mutual events.
With No Age’s growing reputation for off-kilter performances (past venues have included the LA River Basin, a public library, book stores and an Ethiopian restaurant), the Art School may seem a little tame in comparison - but once this pair plug in and let rip, there’s really no telling what could unfold. (Camilla Pia)
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l’ltl Vlt W JAZZ NORMA WINSTONE Recital Rooms, City Hall, Glasgow, Sun 19 Oct
Singer Norma Winstone's first disc for ECM in a decade appearet. hack in March, with Klaus Gesmg on bass clarinet and soprano saxophone and Glauco Venier on trumpet. The trio format and piano plus—horn instrunientation echoed the halcyon days of the earlier Azimuth trio With Kenny Wheelei and .John layloi on the Munich-based label. but the singer reveals that the disc almost didn't happen.
The trio had made an earlier record that was only released in Austria. but ECM's Manfred Eicher happened to hear an intewiew Wlill (.‘iesing on the radio. then ran into Venier in a recording studio. He expressed his interest in their music. but by that point all was not well Within the gioup. as Winstone explains.
'There had been a bit of a falling out between Klaus and Glance. and they didn't seem keen to work with each other any more. At that point thought. nght. here's a last chance to keep this going. and picked up the phone to Manfred. I left a message saying I heard he was interested. and he called me back ten minutes later to say “Let's do the record".'
With an ECM disc in prospect. the two men reconciled their differences and made the album. and very good it is too. We now get a chance to check the trio out at first hand in an all too rare Scottish outing for the singei. courtesy of lodd Gordon's Jazz International series. (Kenny Mathieson)
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