Cowgate Block Party: Live Music To Keep You Warm

On 31 January, a brand new festival all-dayer is coming to three of Edinburgh’s grassroots live music venues, Sneaky Pete’s, Legends and Bongo Club. Named the Cowgate Block Party and organised by Craig Gornall, the festival’s lineup is sure to get you out of your cold flat and into the heart of the capital’s underground music scene. To further the incentive to leave the house and hit the Cowgate, Gornall shares that the ethos of the festival is "built around the idea of 'discovering tomorrow’s headliners today'. Cowgate Block Party brings together emerging artists across genres – from indie and punk to alt-pop and experimental sounds.” With January’s Cowgate Block Party only the festival's first iteration, Gornall promises that this all-day festival will become a fixture in the Scottish music calendar, with more events expected to follow in April, July and October. 

While it seems unconventional to have a block party in the dead of winter, Cowgate Block Party is shaping up to be the serotonin boost we need to bear the rest of the chilly months. The Cowgate is the perfect location for the all-dayer, giving punters the quickest route to get from venue to venue on the last day of January. “In my opinion the Cowgate is the life and soul of Edinburgh's live music and club scene, it was an obvious place to host this event," Gornall tells us. As one of the bookers behind Sneaky Pete’s year-round programming, Gornall adds: “Having [Sneaky’s] as a starting point just made sense; Legends is next door and Bongo Club is a 30-second walk. Letting people dip in and out of sets really ensures they can see loads of great new music on one street in one day.” 

Getting into the music you’re expected to hear across the three venues, Gornall has booked a stunning lineup. To name a few of the local Scottish bands set to perform, there’s singer-songwriter Alex Apolline, hometown post-punk favourites Bikini Body, Glasgow-based electronic post-punks Doss, Edinburgh husband-and-wife dream-pop project Sarah/Shaun, and alt-rockers Filmstar, for whom the all-dayer will be their debut gig. A stand-out on the lineup is also London-based punk trio Dream Nails who will be playing Cowgate Block Party just a week before releasing their third album, You Wish. “I wanted to bring the best new bands to the Cowgate, bands who have been popping up in blogs, radio shows and new music playlists over the past six months,” Gornall explains, adding, “for me, these are the bands who will be playing much bigger stages in the future.”

Bikini Body. Image: Rosie Sco.

Cowgate Block Party is a homecoming gig for Bikini Body. “Cowgate Block Party is our first local gig since our recording session in Margate back in October,” the band’s vocalist Vicky Kavanagh shares. So hot on the heels of recording, Bikini Body are set to perform some new tunes for their loving Scottish fanbase at the end of this month. “Though we've road-tested a couple new ones here and there, this will be the first live outing for the majority of our new material and it feels completely fitting that it should be in front of our beloved hometown crowd.” Kavanagh is also keen to spend the day soaking up the music herself, saying that her and the rest of the band are all, “looking forward to checking out as many of the other bands as we can.” She adds: “Our pal Ryan [Marinello] plays drums with Sarah/Shaun who we've been meaning to catch for ages, so we're really excited for that!”

Gornall is psyched that the all-dayer offers punters and musicians a day to warm up from the winter’s cold temperatures in the sweaty venues on the Cowgate. “We all know January can be a bit grim," he admits. "Hopefully by the 31st people will be ready to embrace going out again. What better way to do this than with a load of friends and mutual lovers of new music.” Kavanagh agrees: “The prospect of a day spent scurrying around the Cowgate with pals, pints and plenty good tunes sounds like the perfect way to beat the January blues!”

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Cowgate Block Party takes place at Sneaky Pete's, Legends and The Bongo Club, Edinburgh, 31 Jan