PREVIEW OF THE YEAR Above: Paul Foot. Below L–R: Doug Johnstone; Dunsinane; Liz Lochhead; Elbow.
is a jock-strapped menace to Eurotrash; the other an Atlanta, Georgia quintet operating in the ambit of ‘ambient punk’. Their latest album, Halcyon Digest, fuses indie rock with psychedelia, stringed exotica and garage scuzz. They call themselves ‘ghost rock’; we call them awesome. (NM) ■ Oran Mor, Glasgow, 28 Mar.
THEATRE When it’s good, it’s very, very good When it comes to their festival programming, there’s little doubt that the Arches is a tour de force, and Behaviour is just another string to their mighty big bow, as the theatre festival prepares to surprise, entice and allure us with its brilliance once again. (AM) ■ Arches, Glasgow, Mar, dates tbc.
THEATRE National treasure educates the masses Liz Lochhead seldom disappoints with her playwriting genius, thwarting our expectations and creating worlds to entice and entertain us, case in point being Educating Agnes. Based on Moliere’s L’ecole des Femmes expect Lochhead’s razor sharp wit and you won’t be disappointed. (AM) ■ Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh, 8 Apr–7 May.
MUSIC
MUSIC Glaswegian post-rock instrumental heroes play the capital The List is not a qualified doctor and thus cannot prescribe you culture. But if we could, we’d insist that every soul in the land had frequent intakes of Mogwai. Their new album, Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will, is assured to exhilarate, and their gigs will alleviate any malaise. (NM) ■ HMV Picture House, Edinburgh, 21 Feb.
Among the acts appearing in the spring are the last two Edinburgh Comedy Award winners Russell Kane and Tim Key, 90s Perrier victors Jenny Eclair and Sean Hughes, saucy north Americans Doug Stanhope and Caroline Rhea, the political Marks (Thomas and Steel) and Scottish talents such as Mark Nelson, Susan Calman, Daniel Sloss and sketch gang How Do I Get Up There? It’s just another top-notch GCF, really. (BD) ■ Various venues, Glasgow, 17 Mar–10 Apr. There’s much to Lykke Something in the Swedish water makes for brilliant, original pop stars. There’s indie prince Jens Lekman; electro queen Robyn; and star of our preview show, alt-pop icon Lykke Li: a singer- songwriter who has performed with Kanye West (‘Gifted’), contributed to the Twilight soundtrack (‘Possibility’) and who counts the Kings of Leon among her fans. (NM) ■ Arches, Glasgow, 18 Apr.
BOOKS MUSIC
FESTIVAL
Author and musician of this parish The Edinburgh-based books and music journo for The List Doug Johnstone delivers his third novel and the first for his shiny new publisher. Smokeheads comes with this tagline: ‘Four friends, one weekend, gallons of whisky. What could go wrong?’ Plenty, we’d imagine. (BD) ■ Faber, 3 Mar.
MUSIC Laid-back rockers return Elbow’s laid-back voyage to stardom began in Manchester in 1990 and soared on the back of a 2008 Mercury win for The Seldom Seen Kid. That the melancholic-rockers are playing a venue the size of the SECC feels well-deserved, and it’s worth going along for the hair-raising ‘Grounds for Divorce’ alone. (NM) ■ SECC, Glasgow, 15 Mar.
Something to shout about Almost three decades since their inception, Glasgow rockers Primal Scream have amassed chart and dance-floor success thanks to their raucous deviations through psychedelia, gospel, garage-rock and acid-house. Their pivotal 1991 album, Screamadelica seized the band at their hedonistic, snake-hipped zenith: little wonder they’re revisiting those heady times with Screamadelica live. (NM) ■ SECC, Glasgow, 18 Mar.
VISUAL ART Neo-pop pioneer moves in From crazy dog sculptures to porn star recollections, one of the kings of American cool sets his stall in Edinburgh. See panel, page 15. (AM) ■ Artist Rooms: Jeff Koons, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh, Sat 19 Mar–Sun 3 Jul.
MUSIC
COMEDY Record-breaking Glasgow International Comedy laughterfest ups the ante
Ambient punks bring their psychedelic indie rock Never, ever confuse Deerhunter with Basshunter. One
Something old, something new Inspired by the long-gone Glasgow theatre of the same age, the Tron’s Mayfesto arts season makes a welcome return hoping to capture some of its namesake’s former glory. (AM) ■ Tron Theatre, Glasgow, May, dates tbc.
THEATRE David Greig reworks a classic Scottish tale Macbeth is dead and an English army has swept through the landscape, killed the tyrant and taken the seat of power in David Greig’s stunning play Dunsinane, co-produced by the NTS. (AM) ■ Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, 13 May–4 Jun; Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, 7–11 Jun.
VISUAL ART Annual exhibition showcasing some of the best contemporary UK artists The seventh British Art Show begins in Nottingham before travelling to London, Plymouth and Glasgow. Launched in 1979, the Show is widely
16 THE LIST 6–20 Jan 2011