list.co.uk/music
Edinburgh ■ Ed Sheeran The HMV Picture House, 31 Lothian Road, 0844 847 1740. 6.30pm. £15. New folky rapping singer- songwriter on the block, mooning over girls and stuff, such as on the big hit ‘The A-Team’. FREE Bullit and The Diversions Whistlebinkies, 4-6 South Bridge, 557 5114. 9pm. Covers and rock. FREE Open Mic Nobles Bar, 44a Constitution Street, Leith, 629 7215. 10pm. Open mic session with Caramello Fats and Packet O’Shay.
Wednesday 11 Glasgow ■ Lynnie Carson, Matt Scott, James Murray and Johnny Barr King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, 272a St Vincent Street, 221 5279. 8.30pm. £6. Singer/songwriter bill including Gourock’s Lynnie Carson. Penny & the Restless play in the bar. Part of New Year’s Revolution.
Edinburgh ■ Ed Sheeran The HMV Picture House, 31 Lothian Road, 0844 847 1740. 6.30pm. £15. See Tue 10. ■ Edinburgh Unlimited The Third Door, 45–47 Lothian Street, 225 6313. 8pm. £3. Bands and music showcase. Featuring Jason Kyrone, Colin Adams, Small Feet Little Toes and Damien Casey-Boyce. FREE Jim Harbourne and Sam Siggs Traverse Bar Café, 10 Cambridge Street, 228 5383. 8pm. Acoustic sounds. FREE The Jack O’Diamonds Scrimshaw Shanties Nobles Bar, 44a Constitution Street, Leith, 629 7215. 9pm. Toby Black Diamond and friends. FREE Sea Bass Kid and 3 Card Trick Whistlebinkies, 4-6 South Bridge, 557 5114. 10.45pm. Indie and rock.
Thursday 12
Glasgow ■ Asking Alexandria O2 ABC2, 330 Sauchiehall Street, 332 2232. 7pm. Metalcore with a hint of Eurotrance from this York quintet. ■ Mallory Knox, Stars of the Search Party, Verses and Fires Attract O2 ABC2, 330 Sauchiehall Street, 332 2232. 7pm. £6. Over-14s show. New alt.rock quintet on the block, named after Juliette Lewis’s character in Natural Born Killers. ■ Tango in the Attic, The Black Rats, Letters and Punto the Feef King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, 272a St Vincent Street, 221 5279. 8.30pm. £6. Uplifting Glenrothes indie swingers head the bill. Restless Sinners play in the bar. Part of New Year’s Revolution. Edinburgh FREE Henry Ibbs The Jazz Bar, 1 Chambers Street, 220 4298. 6pm. See Thu 5. ■ Musselburgh Amateur Musical Association Brunton Theatre, Ladywell Way, Musselburgh, 665 2240. 7.30pm. £10 (matinee £8). Mixture of chorus, group and solo numbers at this Annual Revue. FREE Amy Duncan and Lisa Rigby Traverse Bar Café, 10 Cambridge Street, 228 5383. 8pm. Double bill of singer- songwriters. ■ Tinderbox Orchestra The Jazz Bar, 1 Chambers Street, 220 4298. 8pm. £4 (£3). Edinburgh’s contemporary youth orchestra avoids the classical repertoire and sticks instead to pieces by Bjork, Hendrix and Radiohead, as well as writing and arranging its own work; highly unusual behaviour for any orchestra, let alone one made of people aged 13-21. Special fundraising show. FREE Rossco Galloway & Alisdair McErlain Nobles Bar, 44a Constitution Street, Leith, 629 7215. 9pm. Singer- songwriter showcase. FREE The Kennel Wages and Fatlips Whistlebinkies, 4-6 South
ROCK&POP Music
EXPOSURE
DEAD BOY ROBOTICS Avant synth-pop outfit Dead Boy Robotics – Edinburgh trio Gregor McMillan, Mike Bryant and Paul Bannon – released their debut album in November. Rachel Devine finds out some more
The name Dead Boy Robotics must be an obscenely cool reference to an obscure sci-fi tome, right? No, they came up with the name all by themselves. It fits pretty well as it happens; they describe their sound as an amalgam of ‘laptop bleeps, synth squalls, guitars, tribal drumming, yelps and screams’. They’re also big fans of Blade Runner.
Ah, do dead androids dream of recently deceased electronic sheep? Umm, it’s more a case of intergalactic Gregorian monks meet a polite version of the Beastie Boys, underpinned by a touch of the lyrically macabre wrapped up in a hypnotic wash of textured vocals and sparsely executed beats. Oh. So worth a listen then? Undoubtedly so – since being picked to play T In The Park’s unsigned stage in July 2009, the band have had a couple of years to perfect and hone their sound. Although influenced by the likes of Animal Collective, Subtle, Liars and HEALTH, theirs is a very unique, focused and fresh sound and the album is potted with moments of pure brilliance.
Namely? The single ‘Gatherer on the Threshold’ is a quite excellent piece of songwriting: melodically instant, lyrically inventive and bound by a very effective arrangement that demonstrates the trio’s keen understanding of dynamics. The insanely inventive ‘Danger Diamonds’ springs delightful surprise after surprise.
■ Dead Boy Robotics play the Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Fri 20 Jan. Dead Boy Robotics is out now on Tape.
Bridge, 557 5114. 9.30pm. Ska, funk and covers. ■ Future Heroes The Jazz Bar, 1 Chambers Street, 220 4298. 11.30pm. £2–£3. See Thu 5.
5 Jan–2 Feb 2012 THE LIST 83