The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
ROCKTALK GIG GUIDE
It was 20 years ago this year that Dundee lost its finest voice when Billy Mackenzie died.
To mark this milestone and to honour Billy’s enduring legacy, on Sunday at the Reading Rooms 14 Mirrors is a very special night where local musicians perform their own take on the music of the man who even Bjork was too scared to record a duet with.
Performances will feature covers of both Billy’s earlier work with The Associates and his later solo material.
Sunday also marks the eve of what would have been Billy’s 60th birthday and to honour that date, the Reading Rooms will be transformed into a candlelit jazz club in the vein of Ronnie Scott’s, the Soho club famously played by The Associates in 1984.
The evening will include unique performances created especially by The Onion Club, with special guests including former Associate Stephen Knight, Andrew Wasylyk, Kerry Fleming (Kerry Fowler/ The Lost Todorovs), Gavin McGinty (Sinderins), Syann, True Romance and Seonaid Birse.
Entry will be by donation to the Dundee branch of The Samaritans, one of the nominated charities for Billy’s last, posthumously released solo record, Beyond the Sun.
Tickets are available from Groucho’s and www. residentadvisor.net and gates open at 7pm.
Before that, tonight The Reading Rooms welcomes back old favourite Slam to celebrate 25 years of the Glaswegian duo’s Soma label.
Slam instigated Glasgow’s underground house music scene in the late 1980s, going on to be instrumental in the explosion of the UK techno scene.
Protagonists since the early days and always in the vanguard, over the past quarter of a century Stuart and Orde have remained on the cutting edge and firmly at the forefront of musical innovation. Gates open at 10.30pm and advance tickets are £10 from Groucho’s or www.residentadvisor.net
Tomorrow Is Kill is going it alone at Book Club. Expect disco, house and techno all night long.
Gates open at 10pm and advance tickets are £10.
Singer-songwriter Peter Bruntnell plays a pair of gigs in Courier Country this weekend.
Peter hosts the acoustic sessions tomorrow afternoon at Pitlochry Town Hall from 1pm (see Page 4).
He then stops off at PreProduction at Clark’s on Lindsay Street in Dundee on Sunday with a trio comprising himself, Danny Williams (formerly of Black Grape and St. Etienne) and Iain Sloan (of The Wynntown Marshals and Blue Rose Code).
He is a writer with rare and mysterious qualities and has an indefinable knack of locking into listeners’ emotions.
Doors open at 8pm and tickets are £8 from the bar, Groucho’s, Assai Records and www.eventbrite.co.uk
Miami Vince play smooth 70s and 80s tunes tonight at Clark’s on Lindsay Street.
Tomorrow it’s funky pop and rock from Abandon.
Both start at 9.30pm with free entry before midnight.
Thursday’s Pre-Production sees Dundonian musician Jonny Jewel launch his eponymous debut album.
Support comes from Fife group OSKAR Braves and tickets are £7 from the outlets listed above.
Oh God! Not Another Wild Goat Promotions presents a half day metal/hardcore fest on Tuesday at Beat Generator Live!, featuring American groups Hundredth and Silent Planet, English band Landscapes and local support To Kill Achilles, Bereavement and Black Blood.
Doors open at 6.30pm and tickets are available from Groucho’s or on the door.
Number 57 has its weekly acoustic session tonight at 9pm.
Coupe de Ville are in the tea time slot tomorrow from 5.30pm followed at 9.30pm by The Junkyard Dogs.
They are back on Sunday in their usual residency from 7pm.
Cherry Bombz are unplugged at McDaniels tonight at 9.30pm.
Tomorrow it’s The Elaine Stewart Band at 10pm.
Cherry Bombz also play Powrie Bar tomorrow at 9.30pm then East End Bar in Brechin on Sunday from 3pm.
The Tinsmith welcomes Ian Van Dahl on Saturday with support from Dundee Dance Event DJs.
Most famous for his UK hit single Castles in the Sky, the prodigious DJ/producer has accumulated single and album sales reaching millions and truly made his mark on the world of dance music.
The music starts at 9pm and entry is free.
Headroom kick things off at The Bank Bar tonight from 9.30pm.
Tomorrow it’s the psychedelic sounds of Lefty & Friends at the same time.
Songwriters’ Sunday is hosted by Gavin McGinty with guest performances by local musicians from 8pm.
Dave Webster’s open mic night is on Wednesday at 8.30pm.
The Bank Bar’s annual Bandathon tickets are now on sale priced £5, with all proceeds going to Tayside Mountain Rescue.
The event will take place on Sunday 25 June with 12 hours of music from the best local talent.