ONNECTED quite possibly has something for everyone. We’ve already picked out our favourites . . .
CELTIC CONNECTIONS
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P H O T O © B L L S T E B E R
group’s latest album Chasing the Sun is the perfect antidote to the dark, dank Scottish winter. Back at the festival that
always welcomes them as one of its most rousing live acts, they celebrate their tenth anniversary and, after a decade, the hard work really shines through. A toe-tappingly intoxicating
Frànçois and the Atlas Mountains are Lambchop have ever produced, Nixon
not ones to be easily pigeonholed. is as good an introduction to the
The band’s latest album Piano Ombre perfectly illustrates their eclectic sound and has taken them on extensive tours of Africa and Europe. They’ll be joined
Nashville group as any new listeners could hope for. Likewise, fans will no
doubt relish the opportunity to hear the band’s dei ning release in its entirety
by two special guests from Burkina Faso – Sanou Darra on balafon and — a punchy, dramatic and wonderfully graceful collection of songs. Members
blend of i ddle, guitars, mandolin, Djiga Boubacar on ngoni. Additionally,
accordion and bagpipes, this is a band one of Scotland’s hardest-working
past and present join frontman Kurt Wagner on stage for a stripped-back
performance. More than just cult favourites, Lambchop epitomise an
As the legendary drummer with Fela Kuti’s Africa 70, Tony Allen invented the rhythms that drive afrobeat, the revolutionary mix of highlife, jazz and Yoruba music that burst out of 1970s Nigeria. Allen’s rolling grooves bristle with a nervous funky energy, even on his more rel ective tracks. Since leaving Africa 70 in 1979, Allen has enjoyed a varied career as a bandleader and collaborator, drawing on dub, hip hop
and electronic inl uences to create a hybrid sound he calls afrofunk. Support comes from the terrii c
SKERRYVORE Written as a homage to sun-speckled summers on Tiree, where the founding
FRÀNÇOIS AND THE ATLAS MOUNTAINS WITH BURKINABÉ With a unique blend of dreamy French
members of Skerryvore met, the indie-pop and vibrant afrofunk,
LAMBCHOP TONY ALLEN &
WITH MAGGIE BJÖRKLUND IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE
As purposeful, intimate and intense an album as art-country visionaries
who love every minute of performing together and have developed an instinctive ability to feed off each
other’s energy and showmanship with effortless panache. (Rachel Devine)
■ O2 ABC, Fri 30 Jan.
bands today, Kid Canaveral, will open the show with their brand of infectious guitar-pop, getting the crowd warmed up for Frànçois
and co. (Nina Glencross) ■ The Arches, Fri 30 Jan.
soul, noise, R&B and vintage pop. (RD) folklore positively soars. (SS)
■ Old Fruitmarket, Sat 31 Jan. ■ O2 ABC, Sat 31 Jan.
exploratory audacity that triumphs with their swirling blend of country, jazz,
Ibibio Sound Machine, whose blend of highlife, electronica and Nigerian
KING CREOSOTE PERFORMS FROM THE BARR BROTHERS AND
SCOTLAND WITH LOVE Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Thu 22 Jan. ADAM HOLMES & THE EMBERS Tron Theatre, Sat 24 Jan.
VAN MORRISON Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Mon 26 Jan.
11 Dec 2014–5 Feb 2015 THE LIST 47