Radar’s Edinburgh Festival music guide

So for some respite from the eager young thespians and countless average stand-ups, plan your August gig-going with Radar’s guide to the live music and events planned around town.

3 Aug

GERRY LOVES THE FESTIVAL: ADAM STAFFORD, LADY NORTH, THE JAPANESE WAR EFFORT

Sneaky Pete’s, 7pm, £5

One of our favourite Scottish labels stages its own festival party, perhaps in the knowledge that your wallet - and liver - remain relatively intact at this early stage. Adam Stafford and The Japanese War Effort both employ loop effects to great effect, while Lady North emit blistering shards of math rock.

4 Aug

SCOTTISH INDEPENDENT MUSIC FAIR

Summerhall, 12pm - 4pm

Get your paws on the latest releases from Scotland’s cutting edge labels, including the aforementioned Gerry Loves. There will also be live sets and DJs.

WITHERED HAND

Queen’s Hall, 8pm, £10

Edinburgh’s Dan Willson has made significant strides since his last appearance at the Queen’s Hall, and he returns to the grand old hall with Darren Hayman, Gordon McIntyre and compere Josie Long.

5 Aug

BORN TO BE WIDE EDINBURGH SHOWCASE

Electric Circus, £3, 8pm - 3am

Sample a snapshot of Scottish artists, with ten acts playing ten-minute taster sets, and guest DJs spinning their favourite four records by Edinburgh bands in between.

8 Aug

PAWS / LADY NORTH / ERRORS DJ

Electric Circus, 10.30pm, £5

A new indie clubnight for the festival, Circa - brought to you by the folks at Detour and Fresh Air FM - will showcase the best bands, DJs and labels in Scotland. The first night is a corker, with much-hyped PAWS, local lads Lady North and Errors on the decks.

10 Aug

HAPPY PARTICLES / RYAN VAIL

Sneaky Pete’s, 7pm, £5

Glasgow collective Happy Particles were recently tipped to win the inaugural Scottish Album of the Year Award. Despite missing out on that accolade, their live show is a thing of sonic beauty.

11 Aug

THE PICTISH TRAIL / RICK REDBEARD / JOSIE LONG

Electric Circus, 7pm, £8

Fans of the Fence Collective can relive a piece of the Away Game - albeit without the scenery - when co-founder The Pictish Trail arrives in town, supported by Rick Redbeard of The Phantom Band.

14 Aug

TOY / THE MACHINE ROOM

Electric Circus, 7pm, £8

London band Toy have been lauded by The Horrors and Primal Scream, but don’t miss Edinburgh’s The Machine Room and their swirling psych-rock.

15 Aug

BWANI JUNCTION / THE LAFONTAINES / COUNT CLOCKWORK DJS

Electric Circus, 10.30pm, £5

Fitting in this hometown show for Circa amid a frenetic festival schedule, Bwani Junction bring their upbeat indie-pop to the Electric Circus.

FOUND AND AIDAN MOFFAT - #UNRAVEL LIVE

Queen’s Hall, 8pm, £10

FOUND bring their art installation to the live setting with help from Aidan Moffat. In a daring twist, audience members can influence the show as it happens by posting tweets.

16 Aug

FAT GOTH / STEEL TREES / VASQUEZ

Electric Circus, 7pm, £5

A night of heavy sounds, featuring the wonderfully-named Fat Goth and Edinburgh trio Vasquez.

17 Aug

FATHERSON

Liquid Room, 7pm, £8

Fatherson have won over a sizeable and youthful fanbase over the past year and so there should be a great atmosphere at their show at the Liquid Room.

18 Aug

MIAOUX MIAOUX / TEEN CANTEEN / TOM

Sneaky Pete’s, 7pm, £5

Having released his debut album on Chemikal Underground, Miaoux Miaoux’s Julian Corrie is cementing his status as one of Scotland’s finest producers. It’s no small feat that he plays most of it live on his own.

22 Aug

CHURCHES / WE ARE THE PHYSICS / TWILIGHT SAD DJS

Electric Circus, 10.30pm, £5

Enjoying a wave of adulation over recent months that sees them delivered with a headline set at Circa, Churches seem readymade for success. Enjoy livewire punks We Are The Physics and tune selections from The Twilight Sad.

23 Aug

NORTH ATLANTIC OSCILLATION / HOMEWORK

Electric Circus, 7pm, £6

Progressive rock from North Atlantic Oscillation, who team up with electronica lads Homework for this show.

WHATEVER GETS YOU THROUGH THE NIGHT

Summerhall, 10.25pm, £8

This unique multi-genre project - featuring a cross-section of Scotland’s music scene - finds a fitting home at Summerhall after debuting at The Arches in Glasgow recently.

24 Aug

REMEMBER REMEMBER

Electric Circus, 7pm, £6

Signed to Mogwai’s Rock Action records, Remember Remember have seriously fleshed out their sound on their most recent recordings, creating a sublime canopy of slowcore indie. Not to be missed.

25 Aug

KID CANAVERAL / BAD BOOKS

Electric Circus, 7pm, £8

Indisputably one of Scotland’s most in-demand live bands, Fence Collective members Kid Canaveral guarantee a rousing show.

FUTURE OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY

Scottish Parliament, 5pm, £4/£2.50

As part of the Festival of Politics, Holyrood is hosting an hour-long event on the music industry, with guests including Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit. The panel is followed by a band night featuring The Machine Room, The Stagger Rats, Val Verde and The Dandylions.

26 Aug

CONQUERING ANIMAL SOUND

Electric Circus, 7pm, £6

Another nominee for the Scottish Album of the Year Award, Conquering Animal Sound have just been announced that they will be releasing the followup on Chemikal. Find out why at the Electric Circus.

28 Aug

HOLY MOUNTAIN

Sneaky Pete’s, 7pm, £TBA

From one Chemikal signing to another, Holy Mountain are renowned for their bare-chested, headbanging performances of thundering rock, which should cause quite a rammy in the close confines of Sneaky Pete’s.

29 Aug

THREE BLIND WOLVES / WWPJ DJS

Electric Circus, 10.30pm, £5

Rounding off their festival offering, Circa have booked another of Scotland’s favourite live acts in country-rock four-piece Three Blind Wolves. This time We Were Promised Jetpacks are on DJ duties.

30 Aug

TANGO IN THE ATTIC / PRONTO MAMA

Sneaky Pete’s, 7pm, £TBA

If you’ve got this far you’re doing well, but one way to round off your August could be in the company of Fife afro-pop exponents Tango in the Attic.

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