Pictish Trail @ Saint Luke's, Glasgow, 17 Jan

Putting to one side the fantastic array of talent at this year’s Celtic Connections, the festival’s true superpower is its ability to bring together different acts to create nights of magic which are more than the sum of their parts. So it goes with this breathtaking evening at Saint Luke’s, of three Lost Map affiliated artists.

We begin with Isa Gordon, surrounded by bewildering tech and keyboards, with an uninterrupted twenty minutes of magic. While she may be difficult to slot into a specific genre, there are glimpses of early Anna Calvi amongst the drones and loops. It’s when she picks up the guitar that it really comes to life, with a double whammy of covers to finish, somehow segueing from Black Sabbath’s War Pigs into the Robert Wyatt curio Pigs… (In There).

Then it’s over to Callum Easter, who weathers some early tech difficulties with ease. It’s Jimmy Shand jamming with Hamburg-era Beatles at a Black Panther rally; an artist who everyone should resolve to see in 2026.

We’ve already had an embarrassment of riches, but the best is yet to come. The full band show from Pictish Trail cements Johnny Lynch’s reputation as a true showman, holding the audience in the palm of his hand throughout. The set leans heavily on new album Life Slime, and while the songs may not be old favourites they are greeted as friends by the enthusiastic crowd. When Lynch wades into the front row, his hands filled with the aforementioned slime, passing it round the faithful, it feels like an east end feeding of the five thousand. Spiritual stuff.

The band transform the songs, with special mentions going to Susan Bear, and Guto Pryce, moonlighting from Super Furry Animals on bass. The attempts at Dry January are over for many, and the calendar is beginning to fill up. If we see a better show than this in 2026, we will be truly blessed.

---

Celtic Connections run at various venues until 1 Feb

celticconnections.com