Top Ten Events 15 Dec-Jan 5: Christmas & New Year Special – Bumper Edition! |
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THE FESTIVITIES ahead...And so the festive party season is finally nigh. Before it all kicks off good and proper, we guide you towards Christmas with a selection of craft fairs, artful events, musical knees-ups, and festive films screenings, before it all turns a bit more debauched with our selection of the best of what New Year's Eve has to offer. And, just for you, it's all lovingly laid out in chronological, tick-em'-off-as-you-go order (anal? us?). Have a good one, from all at The Skinny. CHRISTMAS PICKSPERFORMANCE
Collective, Edinburgh
Thu 15 Dec, 7pm, Free
New Work Scotland Programme 2011 artist Oliver Braid launches his Christmas Window Exhibition, as part of Collective Gallery's attempt to leave a little surprise behind when they shut up shop for their festive break. Braid launches his display by asking five bands to interpret a Skype conversation documenting a failed romantic and creative partnership between himself and another artist (download it here). Making misery into song will be Panda Su, Maple Leaves, Snide Rhythms, Teen Canteen (aka the ladies from Futuristic Retro Champions in a new guise), and Cuddly Shark. Followed by an after-party at The Waverley from 9pm. MUSIC
Stereo, Glasgow
Fri 16 & Sat 17 Dec, 7pm, £9.50 (£15.50 weekend) here
The Phantom Band host a super-gig weekender (previewed here), for which they've invited along a host of pals to perform and make merry. On the bill is RM Hubbert, Holy Mountain, Tut Vu Vu, Muscles Of Joy, and Paul Thomson fae Franz Ferdinand on decks (Friday), while Take A Worm For A Walk Week, Jacob Yates and the Pearly Gate Lockpickers, and Numbers' DJ Bobby Cleaver play Saturday, book-ended by the Phantom lads themselves. Plus live visuals from art collective 85A, and artist Rachel MacLean (who made this video for them), and the tease of a promise of karaoke. FILM
3. Home Alone
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow
Fri 16 Dec, 11pm, £7 (£5) here
We officially love the Glasgow Film Theatre's late night classic screenings, even more so at this time of year when they pull out a selection of 90s classics (i.e. what our childhood self was watching on VHS repeat back in't day) like Home Alone, featuring Macaulay Culkin when he was cute and innocent. Your ticket stub also gets you free entry to Nice 'n' Sleazy's post-screen club. We'd happily go just for this 15 seconds of pure joy: here. MUSIC
Wellington Church, Glasgow
Sat 17 Dec, 8pm, £9 here
Another day, another rather fine musical-styled Christmas knees-up, as Fife dweller and sometime Fence Collective dabbler James Yorkston (pictured) hosts his own inimitable Christmas Jamboree, a delightful BYOB church hall affair, for which he's invited along singer/songwriter Johnny Lynch, in his The Pictish Trail guise, and Lisa O'Neill for a sing-song. All three of them will share the stage for a collaborative set, swapping songs and stories as they go. We anticipate drinking cider to this gem of a song: Woody With Cider. ART
Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh
Opens Sat 17 Dec, daily (10am-7pm), Free
One of the biggie exhibitions opening over the festive period is the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art's new sculpture showcase, which sees them giving themselves over to sculpture in all its many and varied forms, hosting a variety of works that move from 1900 right through to the present day. Amongst the exhibitors will be Ron Mueck's unforgettable A Girl, returning to Edinburgh after its worldwide tour, alongside works from Rodin, Degas, Damien Hirst, Karla Black, and this year’s Turner Prize-winner Martin Boyce. SHOPPING
Hillhead Bookclub, Glasgow
Sun 18 Dec, noon-7pm, Free
The Granny Would Be Proud collective host their Christmas special, with the local craft mafia manning over 50 stalls, fit to bursting with a selection of vintage clothing, handmade arts and crafts, jewellery, records, and books. And, e'er the ones to jump on a theme, you can expect some festive-themed treats, with mulled wine, roasted chestnuts, and carol singers. For all your last minute Christmas shopping needs, we also recommend Gin In Teacups craft fair, and Edinburgh's own Alternative Christmas Market, which comes complete with cabaret-styled circus sideshows, bike-powered films, and a schedule of live music. MUSIC
Bongo Club, Edinburgh
Sun 18 Dec, 9pm, £8 advance here
The Banana Sessions host their annual and un-frickin'-missable Christmas bash, at which the raggle taggle bunch of popsters will be launching their debut LP, Mixtape. And, in said album's honour, there will be a cassette tape lucky dip, where the first 50 folks through the door will get a randomly-selected C60. We hear The Pet Shop Boys are in there. On top of that, there will be support from Ross Couper, and Tom Oakes, plus, o'course, Buckfast punch – which as we all know is essential Banana Sessions gig fuel, aye. MUSIC
The Arches, Glasgow
Tue 20 Dec, 7pm, £12.50 here
Still riding high on the back of their glorious last album, Everything's Getting Older (#3 in our albums of the year, no less), collaborative duo Aidan Moffat and Bill Wells host a special Christmas Revue over at The Arches. It'll be their first full-band Glasgow show, with drums and everything. Stellar support on the night will come from Chemikal Underground's instrumental guitar virtuoso RM Hubbert, and Wells' other band, The National Jazz Trio of Scotland (also appearing at Tracer Trails' Christmas Party the following night) performing some classic Christmas tunes. Tra-la-la, etc. CLUBS
Sub Club, Glasgow
Thu 22 Dec, 11pm, Free
 We are of course going on the basic premise that any event with a Christmas pun in the title is going to be bloody good. It also has in its favour that it's Subbie's regular pre-Christmas merry-maker, and it's a free door for all. Over the course of the night Sensu, Pro Vinylist Karim, Boom Monk Ben (pictured), Delusions of Grandeur, The Groundskeeper, and Pumpio will all take their turn on the decks. And us? We'll be dancing like idiots, because by the time we roll out of Subbie's doors it'll be one day closer to Christmas. CLUBS
Sneaky Pete's, Edinburgh
Fri 30 Dec, 11pm, £5 (members free)
The Numbers crew host their final Edinburgh party of 2011, with a pre-NYE bash (in advance of their Glasgow Hogmanay party at Stereo the following night). For it, they'll play host to the likes of Deadboy, Spencer, Bobby Cleaver, Nelson, and Goodhand, before it all comes to what shall likely be a rather messy end at the ungodly hour of 5am. We'll then start preparing to do it all over again with Hogmanay official. Read onwards for our pick of the bunch of NYE things to do... New Year picksMUSIC
Captain's Rest, Glasgow
Sat 31 Dec, 7.30pm, £5 here
Bringing in the New Year as only they know how – erm, that'd be with a hefty dose of rather fine live music – Captain's Rest provide the back-drop for a suitably chilled New Year's Eve, where there'll be free entry to the upstairs bar, and an additional fiver gets you the added delight of live sets downstairs from Glasgow quintet Olympic Swimmers (pictured), Jack Townes, This Silent Forest, and the just-announced addition of Casual Sex. There will then be a selection of DJs playing through the bells. MUSIC
Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh
Sat 31 Dec, 9pm, £35 (few remaining gardens tickets here)
Edinburgh's official Hogmanay Street Party comes up with the goods, with Primal Scream headlining proceedings by performing Screamadelica in its entirety (post their Glasgow Barrowland set the previous night), plus support from Bombay Bicycle Club, Sons & Daughters, and Matt Norris & The Moon, before London-born, New York-based producer/DJ/all-round impresario Mark Ronson gets his funked-up pop chops around Edinburgh's official Hogmanay after-bash at HMV Picture House. You'd be a ronsard to miss it. Read our interview with Primal Scream's Andrew Innes here. CLUBS
Electric Circus, Edinburgh
Sat 31 Dec, 9pm, £10 here
With Hogmanay falling on the last Saturday of the month, so JP and HP take up their rightful throne for Magic Nostalgic, with a special selection of one hit wonders and the like chosen by the Magic Nostalgic spinning wheel. And e'er the ones to up the fun levels, they'll also be handing over the reins to you lot, and asking for suggestions for a new wheel category. Email johnpaul@theelectriccircus.biz with your suggestions. The best entry will win a pair of tickets to the night. Personally, we'd like to see a category dedicated to Songs of the Dead (y'know, as in artists no longer with us). CLUBS
Flying Duck, Glasgow
Sat 31 Dec, 9pm, £10 earlybird here
As is their way, the Pin Up crew go all-out with the Hogmanay festivities, hosting their annual – and what will also be their final – Hogmanay Ball. For the night they've secured a line-up to end 'em all, where, after three whole years of handing out Aidan Moffat masks at the door and pretending to be him at the bells, the man himself will actually be in attendance as guest DJ. There will also be live music from For Abel, and Patricia Panther, plus DJ sets from all of The Twilight Sad chaps. Nab earlybird tickets for a tenner here. MUSIC
The Third Door, Edinburgh
Sat 31 Dec, 9pm, £15 here
New live music and club venue on the block, The Third Door (formerly Medina), have got quite a treat in store for all who venture there this Hogmanay. With live music download portal Ten Tracks curating the musical line-up, they've put together a rather fine pre-bells bill that kicks off with a solo acoustic set from Withered Hand, before Asthmatic Astronaut, Broken Records, and Hidden Orchestra take their turn on stage. It'll then turn into a bit of an all-out rave-up, with Akimbo Dive, and Sheffield guests Swank & Jams, manning the decks. CLUBS
16. Best Of Milk
Flat 0/1, Glasgow
Sat 31 Dec, 9pm, £5 earlybird here
The favourited gig-in-a-club night host a special 'best of' Hogmanay bash, where they'll be inviting along a selection of their favourite live acts to play in the New Year – they be exuberant Glasgow and Edinburgh-straddling indie-pop quartet Boycotts, Glasgow dark-pop experimentalists Otherpeople, and Motherwell's own hip-hoppers The LaFontaines. All that plus the usual fine array of white, pink, and green milk cocktails, free biscuits, live visuals, DJs, and 75p cider straight outta the jumbo-sized supermarket bottle. CLUBS
17. Departure Lounge
The Caves, Edinburgh
Sat 31 Dec, 10pm, £24 here
 Bowing out with one almighty party, Departure Lounge call it a day after some eight years (and over 60 memorable nights). They'll take to their usual home of The Caves for what will be the final Departure Lounge Hogmanay, headered by boombastic bass troupe Orkestra Del Sol (pictured), alongside Soul Foundation, and Edinburgh Samba School, plus DJs including regular stalwarts Astroboy, Mr Zimbabwe, and Jiminez. And right there is why this night has proved such a gem, flitting as they do between gypsy brass, soul, massive drums, and hippity-hop. Amen. CLUBS
18. Optimo NYE 2011
The Glue Factory, Glasgow
Sat 31 Dec, 10.30pm, £18 here
A core event on the Optimo calendar, JD Twitch and JG Wilkes (pictured) move their New Year's mega party from the now defunct Art School space to the underground art hub of The Glue Factory, a suitably cool and cavernous setting, complete with decommissioned old glue vats. And, as ever, they'll have the old faithful turbo soundsystem in tow, plus their own lighting design, and a bar niftily constructed out of salvaged sections from The Art School's Vic bar. Extra cool points right there. FUN 'N' GAMES
Grassmarket, Edinburgh
Sun 1 Jan, 2pm, Free
Post-NYE, Edinburgh's Grassmarket plays host to a hangover-curing afternoon of fun and games, which will see us picking a team (either the Doonies, or the Uppies be your choices) and competing in a selection of outdoor games. There's also a rather special line-up of indoor events, which includes Dancebase's own hopscotch-inspired interactive dance game, and Edinburgh trio FOUND (pictured) playing a 'Throw Things At FOUND' gig, which will pretty much play out as it suggests (as in, we're there). CLUBS
Nice 'n' Sleazy, Glasgow
Sun 1 Jan, 11.30pm, Free
You can rely on Nice 'n' Sleazy to break the code a little (er, read: hold an event with 'Dick' and 'Phantasmagasm' in the title while most of us are still in the foetal position sleeping off the excesses). They'll be celebrating in full-on, hangover-crippling style, with what will be their 17th New Year's Day party (previously going by the name of Area 51), a debauched and O.T.T. house, techno and psychedelic knees-up led by troublemakers in residence GK Machine, Mr Spudd, Ben Q Gibson, and DJ Dandy. That'll fix us. ADDITIONAL
Image credits for Christmas cards: (Top row, L-R) Nick Cocozza, Jamie Fitzpatrick, Robbie Porter, Lauren Gentry, Steven Jarvis, Richard Fairhead; (Bottom row, L-R) Oliver Braid, Ross Fraser McLean, Matthew Swan, Janie Nicoll, Kit Leffler, Fraser Douglas. |
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Skinny Christmas Cards
