Scottish Live Music Highlights: June 2023

Edinburgh’s Hidden Door festival takes us across the threshold of June. After Porridge Radio play their opening night on 31 May, Bemz, Goodnight Louisa, Eyes of Others, Rozi Plain and Max Cooper see us right through the first weekend of June. Meanwhile, at the end of the month, you'll find us at Kelburn Garden Party – which kicks off on 30 June – floating us gently into July with a stage all our own. More on that here.

In between all of that, highlights of the Glasgow Jazz Festival (14-18 Jun) include Andrew Wasylyk at Saint Luke’s (14 Jun), Radiohead Reimagined at Òran Mór (15 Jun), JSPHYNX at The Rum Shack, presented by Glitch 41 (15 Jun), and sonic explorer Tara Lily at The Glad Cafe, with support from Kapil Seshasayee (16 Jun). As part of multi-arts festival Spit It Out (16-25 Jun), catch Hak Baker at King Tut’s (17 Jun) as he celebrates the release of his debut album, Worlds End FM.

Festivals aside, some pretty big artists pass through Glasgow this month. On the Barrowlands' iconic sprung floor you’ll find feminist party band Le Tigre (6 Jun), dancefloor-ready electro-pop from CHVRCHES (10 & 11 Jun), and experimental hip-hop from Death Grips (21 & 22 Jun). The OVO Hydro sees the mighty Wu-Tang Clan bring da ruckus (as well as Nas) on the 12th, before SZA, whose stage name was influenced by the Wu’s RZA, stops by a few nights later (15 Jun). On 20 June it’s the turn of Philadelphians The War On Drugs, before Arctic Monkeys bring their massive show to Bellahouston Park for one of the first big outdoor shows of the summer (25 Jun).

Hak Baker. Credit: Nadine Persaud Tilbury.

Smaller venues bring even more familiar faces to Scotland. The Moldy Peaches’ Kimya Dawson plays Glasgow’s Mono (13 Jun), while Paris Is Burning and My Delirium hitmaker Ladyhawke plays King Tut’s (27 Jun). Ratking rapper Wiki also returns to the capital to play The Mash House (27 Jun), for what we hope will be another bouncy set, before playing Glasgow’s Audio (28 Jun). If you love local, ahead of releasing their debut album, Glasgow’s Current Affairs play The Old Hairdresser’s (2 Jun), NANI celebrates their debut Honey EP at Sneaky’s (9 Jun) and Moni Jitchell bring the noise to Leith Depot (23 Jun) and The Old Hairdresser’s (30 Jun).

For something more experimental, promoters 1.5 Months host a noise and electronic-themed night at The Old Hairdresser’s (9 Jun) with Lauren Sarah Hayes, while at the end of the month in Edinburgh, catch her alongside Lomond Campbell and SHEARS at Summerhall for a glimpse behind the music-making curtain at You’re Not Supposed to Do That, a unique show-and-tell gig (30 Jun).