Big Hand @ The Bongo Club

On home turf and in their favourite venue the Big Hand make their return for a night of Mayday Mayhem. Veterans Bombskare tear it up as support, churning out some awesome tunes from their ten man ska machine, so when the Big Hand appear, the majority of people are already up and dancing. The situation only improved as Edinburgh's premier ska band laid out their own brand of bluesy-ska, with old and new songs combining to make a fantastic set, all this with more onstage presence and confidence from their while in Londinium. The boys did not disappoint. It was nigh on impossible to stand still, and some full on skanking action was required. The 'Hand put on an amazingly energetic gig, the only downer here was knowing that they won't be back around these parts for a while. Those bloody Londoners don't know how lucky they are. [Josh Wilson]