Scottish gigs round-up: September 2021

We don’t want to speak too soon, but how good was August!? Most planned gigs and festivals were astonishingly able to go ahead as planned with very few issues, which has been a truly beautiful thing to behold. September seems to be busier than ever before, so here’s an attempt at a snapshot of what you can *hopefully* expect to catch this month in Scotland.

In Glasgow, The Hug & Pint’s Endless Summer series continues with Good Dog (5 Sep) and Heir of the Cursed (15 Sep) two of our highlights. Also at the Hug this month, London riot grrrl punks, Dream Nails stop by with their new singer, Leah Kirby, in tow (8 Sep), and Glasgow punk rock nerds Slime City hold down the fort later in the month (18 Sep). After a packed run of Summer Nights shows in August, King Tut’s has loads more in store this month, including performances from the super talented Billie Marten (16 Sep) and local pop-country lass Rianne Downey (24 Sep).

At SWG3, things seem almost back to normal with a stacked calendar. South-London four-piece Goat Girl stop by on 21 September, while a week later squalling Brighton punks Squid play (28 Sep). In the venue’s Poetry Club space be sure to catch a headline show from Ayrshire rapper Bemz (23 Sep). Also in the west catch Teenage Fanclub (Barrowlands, 16 Sep), Pom Poko (Stereo, 26 Sep) and Virginia Wing (Broadcast, 28 Sep); the latter two also play Edinburgh this month, stopping by The Mash House (25 Sep) and Sneaky Pete’s (28 Sep) respectively.

This month Sneaky’s also welcomes Glasgow-based afro-pop, hip-hop and dancehall artists Sean Focus to the venue (5 Sep), as well as Londoners Childcare (29 Sep). Elsewhere in the capital catch Canadian art-punk band Crack Cloud (Bongo Club, 1 Sep), global legends Nick Cave and Warren Ellis (Edinburgh Playhouse, 20 Sep), and local rising pop act SHEARS (Shout! Scottish Music Experience, 17 Sep). In Dundee you'll find IDLES (Fat Sams, 9 Sep), Kyle Falconer (Church, 13 Sep), and West Lothian rockers The Snuts (Church, 30 Sep).

Festivals are still going strong this month with Intercultural Youth Scotland’s Scotland in Colour kicking off proceedings at The Biscuit Factory (Edinburgh, 4 Sep), with live sets from Sean Focus, Billy Got Waves and AiiTee (with Nathan Somevi). The capital’s Hidden Door festival also returns this month (15-19 Sep) as they take over the Granton Gasworks for five days with music from Ibibio Sound Machine, Katy J Pearson, Rival Consoles and a whole slew of local talent. In Glasgow TRNSMT returns (10-12 Sep) with The Chemical Brothers, Little Simz and Joy Crookes in tow, while Playground Festival takes over the city’s Rouken Glen Park (24-26) with The Libertines, Kelis and Macy Gray among the line-up. Meanwhile, in Aberdeen, True North (23-26 Sep) is back with a programme that includes Peaness, John Grant, Ransom FA and Corinne Bailey Rae.