Scottish Gig Highlights – March 2016

Wave goodbye to dark days and let in the light. Well, if you equate the likes of Pelican, Clint Mansell and Grimes with springtime cheer

Preview by Claire Francis | 29 Feb 2016

Time to shake off the winter blubber and drag our diminished immune systems back out into the world; fortunately, there's plenty on offer to cure what ails you this March.

It would be remiss to march into this month's offerings without giving a nod to the smooth electronic beat mastery of Bob Moses. Mr Moses is in fact the alter-ego of duo New Yorkers Tom Howie and Jimmy Vallance, and their righteous blend is best exemplified by last year's exceptional debut Days Gone By. This one is set to get March off to a thumping start (Broadcast, 1 Mar). Meanwhile, east coast dwellers are in for a bracing start to the season when sharply dressed newcomers Sundara Karma rile up Sneaky Pete's with their creative indie rock (1 Mar). 

As ever, there's plenty on offer from the local contingent too. Glaswegian rock wonder kids Catholic Action are back on the scene after a brilliant 2015 that saw them play T in the Park plus a host of other top class venues. Don't miss them in, er, action at the suitably scruffy Nice n Sleazy (31 Mar). Acrylic are another Scottish group doing great things in the retro rock department; led by the leonine Andreas Christodoulidis, the quintet's moody Doors-esque vibe will permeate Sneaky Pete's on 12 Mar. Those on the hunt for a killer slice of atmospheric post rock crunch, meanwhile, are sure to be satisfied when Errors lay their proggy electronic fugue on La Belle Angele (5 Mar). A mainstay of Mogwai's Rock Action Records, expect gems from last year's Lease of Life.

Wolf Alice are a band who continue to go from strength to lupine strength and their Barrowlands top billing merely confirms what we already know – that the North London alt rockers are firm favourites around these parts, not least due to their grungy hooks and lead singer Ellie Rowsell's ferocious charm (16 Mar). Another name getting the indie kids all in a lather is Grimes – the chameleon-like Canadian with her kaleidoscopic pop anthems is likely to fill the capacious O2 ABC fit to bursting (13 Mar). And speaking of beloved, you can't get any more adored than our very own Trembling Bells. The current five piece lineup, fronted by the bewitching Lavinia Blackwall play Mono's intimate surrounds on 10 Mar – the group scored a rare 5 stars in these pages for last year's The Sovereign Self, so be prepared for a sonically spellbinding show.

Elsewhere there's a solid list of dynamic and diverse acts guaranteed to put a spring in your step. The Spook School are prime contenders for ushering in sunnier skies with their effervescent art school pop (Hug & Pint, 8 Mar), while Dundonian youngsters Model Aeroplanes take their catchy guitar melodies for a jaunt at The Caves on 3 Mar, and a hometown show at Fat Sam's on 5 Mar. There's also a psychedelic storm a-brewin', when American space rockers White Hills play Sleazy's subterranean den with support from trippy local lads The Cosmic Dead (11 Mar). With over 40 separate releases to their name over the course of a ten year career, they're nothing if not prolific.

Emma Pollock is perhaps best known as a founding member of Chemikal Underground stalwarts The Delgados, but the talented singer, songwriter and guitarist is no slouch on the solo front either. Her third record In Search of Harperfield is an expansive foray through nostalgia and halcyon rural days – hear it in its elegant, surging glory at Voodoo Rooms (3 Mar). Prodigious Mancunian Kiran Leonard is another solo act to keep your eye on – the burgeoning young maestro has been compared to guitar great Frank Zappa in some circles, and what more inviting endorsement is there? (Electric Circus, 28 Mar). Resurrected Swedish hardcore gods Refused bring their frenetic mix to our shores for the first time in too long. From 1998's classic The Shape of Punk to Come to last year's comeback record Freedom, it's a chance to see art punk history in the flesh (22 Mar). 

March's staggeringly salubrious rota of talent has most likely given eager punters a multitude of reasons to kick up their heels and celebrate la primavera, but conserve your energy, for there's one more treat in store – Edinburgh's Summerhall continues to play host to a collection of stellar gigs, gathered together under the rather self deprecating moniker Nothing Ever Happens Here. Highlights include Falkirk native, former Y'all Is Fantasy Island frontman and award-winning documentary maker Adam Stafford (11 Mar), who returns after a three year hiatus with an excellent new LP; and the dreamlike, multi-layered synth beats of German musician, producer and electronic shoegaze champion Ulrich Schnauss (13 Mar). Nothing ever happens here? This spring, we beg to differ...

DO NOT MISS
Uneasy Listening: An Evening with Clint Mansell, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, 29 Mar

If you're too young to remember Clint Mansell from his Pop Will Eat Itself days, don't despair – the Coventry musician and former industrial rock frontman is perhaps better known for his sublime film scores. It was Darren Aronofsky who gave Mansell his break scoring uneasy cult suburban terror flick Requiem for a Dream alongside the formidable Kronos Quartet.

Since then, Mansell has gone on to compose for a variety of flicks ranging from Duncan Jones' sci-fi thriller Moon to one of Mickey Rourke's finest moments in The Wrestler – a résumé fit to make any discerning fan of modern classical music weep (and a rather marked departure from his PWEI days). In a rare appearance on our shores (and hot on the heels of scoring Ben Wheatley's imminent dystopian adaptation, High-Rise), the man brings his breathtakingly unique compositions to the grand environs of Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall; sure to be uneasy listening at its very brilliant best.