MUSIC | Previews 86 THE LIST 10 Jul–21 Aug 2014
OPENING & CLOSING CEREMONIES COMMONWEALTH GAMES FESTIVAL 2014 PARTIES Various venues, Glasgow, Wed 23 Jul & Sun 3 Aug
The fevered anticipation with which the announcement of Belle and Sebastian’s first Glasgow gig since 2010 was met is a fitting parallel to the general excitement ahead of the Commonwealth Games. The six-piece’s open-air concert at the revamped Kelvingrove Bandstand, which sold out in less than ten minutes, promises to be one of the gigs of the summer. After publicly backing the campaign to restore the once-faded landmark to its former glory, singer Stuart Murdoch described the venue as a ‘dream within a dream’, which is no doubt how fans feel about seeing the group perform in the heart of their spiritual home in the city’s West End. It seems reasonable that ‘The Stars of Track and Field’ will get one of the biggest cheers of the evening if performed. Across the city, Lulu headlines the opening celebrations
in Glasgow Green alongside Eddi Reader, James Grant, Sarah Hayes from Admiral Fallow, Roddy Hart, RM Hubbert and others, with the opening ceremony beamed live on big screens. The Old Fruitmarket plays host to tri-nation musical powerhouse Boomerang, a fusion of indigenous music from Scotland, Australia and New Zealand, followed by a late-night festival club for anyone left standing. Two-and-a-bit weeks later and it will all be over. Treacherous Orchestra leads the closing ceremony celebrations in Glasgow Green, with the best bits reviewed on the big screens. At the Kelvingrove Bandstand, Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra unveil a new commission in collaboration with Tam Dean Burn and multi-instrumentalist Corey Mwamba, while McOpera Ensemble, formed by members of the Scottish Opera orchestra, provide a rousing – and likely emotional – backdrop to a screening of the official closing ceremony. (Rachel Devine) ■ See page 13 for more Commonwealth Games events.
POST ROCK SLINT The Arches, Glasgow, Fri 15 Aug
In a time before Mogwai walked the post-rock earth, there was Slint. A group whose commercial returns never came anywhere near matching their immense influence on future generations of musicians – their 1991 album Spiderland is regarded as an underground classic today, but sold less than 5000 copies initially – the Kentucky quartet and their doomy, brooding guitar compositions have been cited by all from Glasgow’s finest to Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Sigur Rós as a year zero point of inspiration. This latest reformation – their third to date, after stints in 2005 and 2007 – ties in with a new Spiderland reissue. Founder members Brian McMahan and David Pajo admit they do comeback tours more due to popular demand than for personal gratification – it’s less an opportunity for them to bask belatedly in the glow of their magnum opus than a chance for fans to experience live a group who had split by the time their defining work was released. Mythology has coloured Spiderland – legend has it members wound up institutionalised after its making (McMahan suffered a mental breakdown). But where there was darkness, there was humour and kinship too. Has there ever been a more emotive band promo photo than that on Spiderland’s cover – a blurry B&W shot of four half-grinning heads poking from the shimmering surface of a lake, a portrait of teenage precociousness / innocence? If Slint make you nostalgic for anything, it’s for an age when a bunch of kids from nowheresville could redefine guitar music without even knowing they were doing it. (Malcolm Jack)
FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS EDINBURGH JAZZ & BLUES FESTIVAL Various venues, Edinburgh, Fri 18–Sun 27 Jul
Jazz is a living artform, but EJ&BF’s programming can be a little too reliant on tribute shows and revivalists. There are always gems, however, and this year’s Mandela Day Concert is a must- see, featuring the great South African pianist / composer Abdullah Ibrahim, mbaqanga (South African dance music) legends the Mahotella Queens (left), and contemporary South African stars Freshlyground (although the less said about the latter’s slick MOR pop the better). As one of the Jazz Epistles, Ibrahim recorded the first album by a black South African band.
Moving to Europe in the early 60s, his Dollar Brand Trio combined township folk with Ellingtonia, hard bop and the avant-garde. Championed by Sir Duke himself, Ibrahim went on to work with everyone from Don Cherry to Archie Shepp and fellow South African Johnny Dyani (check out their amazing African Echoes from 1979). Ibrahim worked later with Cape Town musicians, developing the Cape jazz sound that yielded classics like ‘Mannenberg’, an unofficial national anthem during the apartheid era. He’ll perform solo here, all the better to hear his elegant, soulful and adventurous piano playing. Of the Festival’s contemporary jazz offerings, highlights include NYC piano trio The Bad Plus, famed for frisky tunes and quirky rock covers, and excellent young UK pianist Zoe Rahman, leading the Commonwealth Jazz Orchestra. (Stewart Smith) ■ Mandela Day Concert, Fri 18 Jul; Commonwealth Jazz Orchestra, Sat 26 Jul, both at Edinburgh Festival Theatre; The Bad Plus, Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 26 Jul, edinburghjazzfestival.com