1 HELLO Mr Mackenzie. Some 30 odd years ago I met my first love at a Goodbye Mr Mackenzie gig when the album Good deeds And Dirty Rags was fresh off the press. Hello, Norman Watt, if you’re reading this...
Some (and I would be one) would say Mackenzie are one of the best bands to ever kick off on a Scottish stage. They have reformed to do a small tour around Scotland and the first gig is in the mighty Dundee, with Fife to follow and on to Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, and last but not least Dunfermline.
The fabulous Shirley Manson once graced the stage with this lot as they called out to the rattling boys and donated all profits from one of their songs to Rape Crisis. I love this band.
Dundee, this Friday, tickets £16.50 at www.wegottickets.com/event/466112
I will be showcasing the rest of the gigs in the weeks to follow. This column hearts Scott Walker and his band. (Actually, I’ve a soft spot for anyone named Walker)
2 DUNDEE is where it’s at this week. The Cheviot, The Stag and The Black, Black Oil, a legendary piece of Scottish theatre, tells the story of the exploitation of Scottish lands, waters and people over the centuries.
From the Highland Clearances to the oil boom, this is the universal tale of how the greed of a few blights the lives of many. Add a generous dose of Scottish rebellion and irreverence, throw in some live music and a riotous ceilidh, and you’ve got yourself a rollicking great night out. This genius production is showing at The Ardler Complex, Dundee, on Thursday, 7pm. Tickets £12.
3 Beats. Under the 1994 Criminal Justice Act the police were given extraordinary powers to shut down events that featured any music “characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats”, and so began the birth of club culture as we know it today.
I was one of the clubbers fighting against section 63. The parties blend into a series of snapshots … dancing on a car as the light came up over a hill; sweaty, night-long bonds with strangers you’d probably never see again; an unshakeable feeling of being part of something huge and beautiful. Beats, a film by Brian Welsh, tells this story properly. Starring Scottish actor Lorn Macdonald, it’s now playing in select cinemas over the country. Go see it.
4 SWG3 in Glasgow will welcome street artists from around the world for the third annual Yardworks Festival, a two-day, site-wide celebration of live and curated graffiti art, which will take place in the venue’s Galvanizers Yard. The action started yesterday and continues today, from 11am-8pm.
Running alongside the event’s live graffiti, there will be a number of workshops and musical performances, as well as street food vendors, cocktail bars, a creation station for kids, a custom-built Montana Cans pop-up shop and 13ft-high skate ramp. £5 for adults, free for kids and dugs. Very family friendly.
5 Join award-winning broadcaster, academic and author Mithu Sanyal for a bold, honest and unflinching exploration of the way we talk and think about rape, based on her new book. Tomorrow at the Lighthouse bookshop, Edinburgh. Tickets £15 via eventbrite.
6 The Dark Carnival Unplugged at Paisley Arts Centre is an intimate music and theatre show, with songs, storytelling and a free (though not compulsory!) glass of whisky for everyone. It tells the tale of newcomers to the afterlife who discover that death is not actually the end.
The performance will be taking place on Friday. Details on tickets can be found at https://renfrewshireboxoffice.ticketsolve.com/shows/1173591415
7 Museums at Night is back and will take place in Glasgow from Wednesday to Saturday this week. Explore art, history and heritage after dark with Museums at Night events across Glasgow. Various prices, some free events. See details at www.eatmytickets.com/en/artist/museum-night/
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