MUSIC LIST/ROCK
I Templehall Stampers Temple Hotel. Esplanade. Joppa. 65‘) 426-1. Evening. Trad and dixie residents.
I Graham Blamire Jazzers Basin Street. llayrnarket Terrace. 337 With. Evening.
FRIDAY 5 Glasgow
I lnxs Barrow land. 244 ( iallowgate. 7.30pm. £5. Having recently enjoy edthcir first top thirty single tn this country with the dreadful New Sensation. the Australians bring what will bca scaled-down stadium show to Barrowland. A bit ttntair to judge on the cliche-ridden sitigle. for their album. KH‘A‘. and its predecessors have had their moments.
I Stump Rooftops. ‘)2 Sauchiehall Street. lil.3ilpm. They seem to have been remarkably quiet since their signing to Chrysalis. which has at least prevented the music papers irotn forcirtg them down our throats for a while. lzxpect the Stttrnp backlash to begin soon. if I haven't already missed it.
Okay, so Hothouse Flowers haven’t broken any records for burning up the charts, but here's another Dublin-based band, recenty signed to Virgin, who share the same ideal of the power of straightahead American- sounding rock and commitment to rousing live performance. Something Happens! (don’t forget the exclamation mark) have been raved about in the pages of the Irish press since 1985, before their self-released debut EP ‘Two Chances’, distributed by Cooking Vinyl over here, yielded two tracks which were picked out by Irish DJs and journalists as favourites of ’86: ‘Burn Clear’ and ‘Shoulder High’, still favourites in the group’s impassioned live performance.
Although one review of ‘Burn Clear’ called it both ‘agreeably souped-up Bunnypop’ and ‘the year’s best U2 record’ (all scribblings about Irish
Edinburgh
I The Godiathers and Chatshow. Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. Doorsopen 7.30pm. Peter Coyne‘s (ex ofThe Sid Presley Experience) excellent band. bringing traditional late-Sixties-style rock into the Eighties with a vengeance. Hard. passionate rocking. compared to both The Who and the best of the pub-rockers. Should be busy.
I Three Dancers Music Box. Victoria Street. 220 1708. U after9pm. l.ocalband with good. ifslightly Postcardian debut single out now.
I Texas Breakfast Preservation Hall. Victoria Street. 226 3810. £1 after‘).3ilpm. New name for a different line-up ofthe bluesy Mr Rhythm.
I The Dan Blocker Experience Negociants. Lothian Street. 225 (i313. 9pm. Free. Country. rock.
I The Block Brothers Lord Darnley. West Port. 229434]. 10pm. Free.
I Yes Yes Juliette Student linion. Teviot Row. Students and guests only. Indie-pop with Blondie and B-S2s influences. they claim. Sounds okay.
I The Following Blues Basement. Broughton Street. 556 7H7.
I Live band Cavern. Cowgate. 226 5641. Nodetails yet.
bands include a mention of U2, so why should this be any different), the most obvious signpost to the Something Happens! sound is that of REM, the comparison perhaps overused, but not without a certain justification. Guitarist Ray Harmon gets a huge sound from just a 6-string, and knows the value of dropping a few lines of spaghetti western into his agreeable mixture of rock-related styles. Tom Dunne’s vocals owe a lot to Michael Stipe, but Dunne resists the temptation to drift off too far into the ethereal. Along with bassist Alan Burne (nailed as a rising sex symbol in ‘Hot Press’) and drummer Eamon Ryan, they form as fight a unit as one would expect- and the contract with Virgin has enabled them to give up their day jobs at last.
Only confirmed date in the area so far is Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow on Friday 12. (Mab)
SATURDAY 6
Glasgow
I The Alarm/The Silencers Barrowland. 244 Gallowgatc. 7.30pm. Can't recommend this one either. The Alarm call this ‘The Electric Folklore Tour'. which is a neat paraphrasingofbombastic stadium rock drivel. The Silencers have two good songs ‘Painted Moon' and the current single. ‘I See Red‘. The rest ofthe album is completely forgettable. and last year‘s live performance went downhill front the moment Billy Sloan steppedon stage to irttroduce them. However. extensive touring since then in America may have helped get their house in order. I The Thieves (‘umbernauld Theatre. Curnbernauld. 7.30pm. A hometown gig for The Thieves who will be hoping to maintain the momentum oftheir pre-Christmas successes.
I The River Detectives Blackfriars. Bell Street. 552 5924. 9pm. Free. The first of many gigs in the next fortnight — thistirne just the acoustic band.
I Billy Forbes La Taniere. Fox Street. 4pm. Free.
I Zenith La Taniere. Fox Street. 9pm. Free.
Edinburgh
I Blue Monkey Experience. Good And Gone. Hee Haw and Vatican Shotgun Scare The Venue. Calton Road. 557 3073. £3 (£2). 50p off with leaflets currently circulating. Latest event pttt on by the Edinburgh Musicians Collective. featuring BME. the winners of the 1.i.s‘I'McEwan's Lager demo competition. making one oftheir slightly tnore frequent East Coast appearances. the grungey blues of Good And Gone. and new group I lee Haw. who should he a hell ofa good rock band once they develop beyond the obvious Sonic Youth/That Petrol Emotion influences. Vatican
Presents
ASWAD
Plus Guests
Monday let March '88 EDINBURGH , The Queens Hall
Tickets EDINBURGH
GLASGOW ,-
- Virgin, Ripping Records and The Queens Hall Just The Ticket Start - 7.30 pm
Cumin/J soon in March John Martyn a solo performance - Edinburgh. Glasgow Danny Wilson - Live - Glasgow
Shotgun Scare specialise. or at least they did. in topical little numbers about other members of the local music fraternity. The gig is to raise money to bring otit a compilation tape of E MC bartds. and anyone can bring their demo along for possible inclusion on it. or future tapes. They‘ll also play them on the night asparl ofthe disco.
I Atilla The Stockbroker and The Waltones Heriot-Watt University. Rieearton Campus. Students and guests only. One of the original ranters. by my Doc Martens. and still going strong. Saw Atilla on TV once. being himself. and he had a few v ery sussed things to say. Why's his poetry so crap then'.’
I Just Add Water Negociants. Lothian Street. 225 6313. 9pm. Free. Synthy pop front trio with trumpet and drum machine. I Tonight At Noon Preservation l lall. Victoria Street. 2263816. tl after‘).3(lpm. I Bulb Cormorant Lord Darnley. West Port. 22‘) 4341. Afternoon. Free. Blues. country-rock.
I Hungry Years Lord Darnlcy. west Port. 2294341. llipm. Free. Modern. big-sounding rock. encompassing covers by the likes of Big Country and [.2
I Live band Cavern. ('owgate. 22o5ft4 l.
SUNDAY 7
Glasgow
I Restless Rooftops. 92 Sauchiellall Street. 10.30pm. Restless seem tobea regular feature at Rooftops or at least it doesn't seem too long since they were last here.
I Molotov Cocktails l looters. ()SWitltt Street. 9pm. Free. Recent reintroduction of Sunday night bands at Hooters. and the Molotov Cocktails. who have been arotmd for years without seeming to get anywhere. maybe interesting ifonly tosee how they have developed from the early demos.
For all your LPs, CDs, tapes and concert tickets
91 South Bridge Edinburgh 031 226 7010
The List 5 — 18 February 1988 33