N E W N E S S Kirsty McLaren checks out the festival additions for 2011
ARENAS:I RockNess have laid on three brand new arenas for 2011. Firstly, the Rock’n’Roll Circus will showcase cutting-edge music and comedy talent from the likes of Jamie Woon and The Cuban Brothers. Secondly, Glasgow clubbing institution Sub Club will present Sub Club Sound System, hosting Modeselektor, Jamie XX and Optimo. Finally, the new Sound City Stage will feature
the top 20 entries in the Sound City nationwide talent search for hot new bands and solo artists. COMEDY:I The festival has no fewer than 28 comedians signed up to appear over the course of the weekend. From the best Scottish talent to some of the biggest festival comics from around the world. Highlights will no doubt include Ian Cognito, Ro
Campbell, Sean Hughes and Daniel Sloss. STREAMING:I Exclusive coverage of this year’s RockNess will be made available to watch on the BBC iPlayer and BBC ALBA. The viewing package will include a mixture of live- streamed headline shows and highlights will air right through to September to ensure those who missed out can catch up, and those who
can’t get enough can relive it. CELEBRATIONS:I Glasgow’s Soma Records celebrate 20 years of releasing the crème de la crème of electronic dance music in 2011, and RockNess will be helping them by laying on a three-day party that will include performances from the likes of Erol Alkan, Pan-Pot, Andrew Weatherall, Funk D’Void and Ewan Pearson.
‘Things go in cycles. It’s like fashion, like flares go out then skinny jeans come in, people want something fresh,’ adds Katy (real name Kathleen Brien). ‘It’s the strongest ever urban scene at the moment and I hope it can progress and keep getting stronger and be the base for something larger.’ True, home-brewed urban music is manna to UK record buyers right now, but Brien’s success is down to more than just people’s boredom with the American alternatives. Her regular collaborators, Magnetic Man – a supergroup comprising dubstep figureheads Skream, Benga and Artwork – recently turned themselves from gritty, South London trendsetters to a crowd- friendly chart outfit and festival booking (they also play this year’s RockNess on the Saturday). The trio, and producers like them, have only just finished laying the path to crossover success – now Brien is perfectly positioned to walk down it. ‘The [album’s] producers were Geeneus &
Zinc. Between them they’ve made grime, jungle, house, UK funky and dubstep, so it’s a real mash-up hybrid of all those genres with my songwriting over the top,’ she explains. ‘Sort of a kitchen sink drama. I wrote it while I was at uni, so it involves everything in my life from raving to love, my friends and partying. You’ve got tracks like “Katy on a Mission” and “Lights On”, which are very upbeat, it’s all very electronic but some of the stuff is quite sad and much darker.’ Though ‘raving’ doesn’t appear in the plays of the original kitchen sink dramatists, Brien needn’t worry too much about her literary allusions when she has such evident pop smarts. Prior to studying popular music at Goldsmiths Unversity, she was at Croydon’s BRIT School, and has followed Adele, Amy Winehouse and Kate Nash out of that institution into the charts. To her credit, she has a background of involvement in bone fide underground hits, originally featuring on a number of house tracks as Baby Katie (including the Geeneus cover of Kevin
Saunderson’s classic ‘Good Life’) before the aforementioned work with Magnetic Man (‘I love working with those guys, they’re hilarious’), then guesting on squiggly, electro thumper ‘Hold Me’ for The Count & Sinden’s Mega Mega Mega album. It was her collaboration with Benga, however, ‘Katy on a Mission’ – a resonant, bassy dubstep track – that ended up going top ten. By the time she toured Scotland this May, she was so in demand her Glasgow date was upgraded from King Tut’s to the Arches.
When we speak she’s crammed into the back of a van hurtling down the motorway towards Plymouth, where she’ll be finishing off her dates supporting Tinie Tempah, but still manages to be endearingly enthusiastic about the current music scene and the position she’s found herself in. ‘It’s been wonderful. I’ve got the best job in the world.’ Her highlight? The opportunity to collaborate with one of her musical heroes on single ‘Lights On’, another top ten hit. ‘You ask any female MC out there “who is your favourite MC?” and they’re gonna say “Ms Dynamite”. No question about that at all. She was definitely an influence on me; she’s a wonderful person, so humble and lovely. She’s a wicked role-model and she’s inspired me a lot because she came from pirate and garage and crossed over. She found it quite daunting as well so she’s been wicked to have around.’
A full live band will back her at RockNess, but it will still be Brien’s vocals that step into the spotlight – her distinctive delivery adding emotional depth and personality. She got a taste for festival crowds when supplying vocals for Magnetic Man in Reading Festival’s rammed dance tent last year, but this will be her first time out with her own music. ‘Because my music is quite energetic it’s a lot of fun performing the songs. It’s gonna be a great atmosphere; I can’t wait.’ Katy B plays the Goldenvoice Arena, RockNess, Fri 10 Jun.
‘THE MUSIC SOUNDS IMITATION’
BRITISH, REAL RATHER THAN AN
ROCKNESS
TRIBAL GATHERING RockNess’ mix of dance beats, DJs and rock brings together a multitude of musical tribes. Let’s see who’s out to represent . . .
INDIE ROCKERS CHIEF: Kasabian brought T in the Park to a storming close last year and their electro rock anthems should tear up the banks of Loch Ness as they headline on Friday. FOLLOWERS: The Cribs, Jim Jones Revue, We Are Scientists, The Wombats, Bombay Bicycle Club.
BASS ADDICTS CHIEF: Magnetic Man, confusingly not a man but three as Benga, Skream and Artwork bring dubstep to the masses. FOLLOWERS: Jamie Woon, Nero, Skrillx, Sub Focus, Katy B, Jamie xx.
DANCEFLOOR BANGERS CHIEF: The Chemical Brothers have a seemingly unending list of infectious, heavy-hitting hits from ‘Block Rockin’ Beats’ and ‘Hey Boy Hey Girl’ to ‘Galvanise’. The perfect Saturday night closer. FOLLOWERS: Groove Armada, Simian Mobile Disco, Japanese Popstars, Example.
HOUSE HEADS CHIEF: Hailing from Chicago, Derrick Carter knows his house. Expect smooth cuts, deep deep grooves and liquid beats. FOLLOWERS: Laidback Luke, Master H, Harri & Domenic, Jesse Rose.
SCRATCH PERVERTS
CHIEF: DJ Shadow is an acknowledged master of the art of deck manipulation. His classic albums have proved one man and his turntable can be the next step in musical evolution. FOLLOWERS: DJ Yoda, Mark Ronson, Erol Alkan.
GREAT SCOTS CHIEF: After three years away, Glasgow’s Sons & Daughters make a welcome return to the festival circuit, playing out their new album of folk-tinged, rock stompers Mirror Mirror. FOLLOWERS: Frightened Rabbit, Broken Records, Clouds, Emeli Sandé.
LAUGHING BOYS
CHIEF: After the success of Kevin Bridges in 2010, RockNess is launching a comedy stage this year. Sean Hughes is a master stand up, making jokes out of the misery of the mundane. FOLLOWERS: Daniel Sloss, Scott Agnew, Ro Campbell, the Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolf III. 26 May–23 June 2011 THE LIST 37