To cut to the chase, Natasha Radmehr and I went on a whirlwind tour of seven live music venues in Glasgow to seek out the city’s most entertaining toilet humour in graffiti form, looking for photo opportunities in female/male cubicles and trying our best not to get arrested in the process. Here’s what we found…

STEREO (22-28 Renfield Lane)

Ladies’

Men’s

BAR BLOC (117 Bath Street)

Men’s

THE CAPTAIN’S (185 Great Western Road)

Ladies’

Men’s

MONO (12 Kings Court)

Men’s

KING TUT’S WAH WAH HUT (272a St Vincent Street)

Ladies’

NICE N SLEAZY (421 Sauchiehall Street)

Ladies’

13TH NOTE (50-60 King Street)

Ladies’

Men’s

Louis Abbott (Admiral Fallow) – Burn (The Pop Cop Subcity session)

Roddy Hart & The Lonesome Fire – Send A Message

Radio 1′s unpopular proposal to lump the Introducing in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales shows together as a single, UK-wide programme was finally sanctioned by the BBC Trust on May 16, 2012 – seven months after Paul Downie and I began a campaign to stop it happening.

Even though our efforts were ultimately in vain (it’s worth reading some reaction to the verdict), a lot of people went to an awful lot of trouble to highlight the detrimental, damaging repercussions of such a step to the individual nations concerned. So I’ve written a poem by way of gratitude:

________________________________________________________________

To the 14,000 listeners and fans who signed the petition
You made us realise this was a worthy mission,

To the musicians who busked at Pacific Quay in the rain
It was for folk like you that we launched this campaign,

To Andrew Rankine of dubstep label ABAGA, what a star
You told people this didn’t just affect indie kids with guitars,

To Joan McAlpine, Fiona Hyslop, Pete Wishart and Gail Lythgoe
Your political clout helped word spread beyond Glasgow,

To Gerry Norman and Bethan Jenkins who fought for Northern Irish and Welsh stations
Your efforts ensured we had the strength of two more nations,

To bloggers, journalists and tweeters, you made people see
That passionate words and hashtags get noticed by the BBC,

To my trusty sidekick Paul Downie of Pelmet Nites fame
Future trips to Holyrood and London just won’t be the same,

To the Introducing team of Alim, Howieson and McCrae
In your music we trust even if BBC London can’t see it this way.

________________________________________________________________

Previous posts:
Save BBC Introducing in Scotland campaign: where we’re at (part 3)
Save BBC Introducing in Scotland campaign: where we’re at (part 2)
Save BBC Introducing in Scotland campaign: where we’re at

Bear Bones – Oil & Lacquer

Galleries – Everything Continued

The Music Alliance Pact is a project started up and run by The Pop Cop in which a heap of blogs around the world come together on the 15th of every month to share their favourite song and then simultaneously give away the whole lot for free (with permission from the artists, bien sûr). Be sure to check out the MAP archive on the right-hand side of this site.

This month’s choice for Scotland is the delightful Julia And The Doogans from Glasgow.

Click the play button icon to listen to individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the whole 34-track compilation through Ge.tt here.

SCOTLAND: The Pop Cop
Julia And The Doogans – Down The Line
Julia Doogan has everything you’d want from a pop singer – a genuinely distinguishable voice, a breakable heart, just the right amount of melancholy, and lyrics that are honest but not mushy. MAP exclusive free download Down The Line is taken from Julia And The Doogans’ achingly graceful new five-track Diamonds EP (buy on Bandcamp), and shows off the talents of Julia and her lush band to near perfection.

June 2, Dirty Weekender Festival, Kilmarnock (tickets)
June 17, Gibson Street Gala, Glasgow (free)
July 9, The Arches, Glasgow (The Love Club)
July 21, The Wickerman Festival, Dumfries & Galloway (tickets)

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Prietto Viaja Al Cosmos Con Mariano – Ey, Esa No Es Forma De Decir Adiós
PVACCM is a psychedelic rock duo (Mariano, drums and vocals; Prietto, guitar and vocals) from Buenos Aires. Their first recordings were kind of lo-fi experiments but in the past couple of years they’ve developed a unique sound with melodies and lyrics that grow on you in a melancholic way. This track is their rendition of Leonard Cohen’s classic tune Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye and features on their last album, a 28-song double record that you can purchase from Bandcamp.

AUSTRIA: Walzerkönig
Mile Me Deaf – Wild At Heart
Mile Me Deaf is one of the other bands Killed By 9V Batteries’ Wolfgang Möstl plays in. And although side-projects – such an unfair name for a 500+ songs oeuvre – are usually a space for weird shit your band mates didn’t agree to, their first album Eat Skull, and especially the first single Wild At Heart, is surprisingly free of noise and distortion. Instead, it creates the last-day-of-summer-holidays feeling you know from Girls and Beach House.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Leonardo Marques – Linha Do Trem
Nostalgic melodies are the hallmark of Dia e Noite No Mesmo Céu, the debut album of Leonardo Marques. His songs recall a bucolic scenery, romantic and lonely, as we can hear on Linha Do Trem. Leonardo recorded all instruments on his solo work (except drums) in a homely, intimate setting. His music is likely to appeal to fans of Elliott Smith, Clube Da Esquina and Jon Brion.

CANADA: Quick Before It Melts
The Rest – Always On My Mind
The story of The Rest’s new album, SEESAW, will be one of legend. First, their dear friend and producer Dan Achen passed away suddenly just as they started recording. Then, a month away from finishing the record, a hard-drive glitch deleted everything they’d done so far. It took a black box recovery team six months to retrieve it. Now, more than a year later, it’s here. And it’s stunning. The beautifully hazy Always On My Mind just hints at SEESAW’s orchestral brilliance.

CHILE: Super 45
Daniel Klauser – Simply Swag
If we had to put all our money on one name from the Chilean dance scene, it would definitively be Daniel Klauser. The young producer skillfully brings together elements from 90s house, ghetto-style hip hop and tribal music, and has so far gathered a considerable amount of positive reviews from local and international media. This track open his Simply Swag EP, which you can download for free from Diamante Records.

CHINA: Wooozy
Snapline – Sustaining
Beijing-based trio Snapline just released their second album Phenomena through Maybe Mars Records. Their music puts a contemporary Beijing spin on the sounds and ideas produced by the noise and minimalist musicians of the 70s and 80s, especially focusing on the New York scene of that period. They also explore the dark, industrial music coming out of England during that period, especially from bands such as Joy Division and The Cure.

COLOMBIA: El Parlante Amarillo
Like Some Cat From Japan – Johnny Ramone
Like Some Cat From Japan (LSCFJ) take their name from a line in one of David Bowie’s masterpieces, Ziggy Stardust. This electro group from Bogotá have a dance-punk sound that is perfect for the sweaty throng of a nightclub and dancing from dark until dawn.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
SLOWOLF – See U In My Dreams
This summer Andreas Asingh, one third of lauded electro-pop outfit SMALL, will release his debut as SLOWOLF. Not much is known about the project but he says that black metal, hip hop and dream pop will unite, perhaps for the first time, on the album which will also feature a chorus written by a seven-year-old boy and Raekwon of the Wu-Tang Clan. Here’s the excellent first single See U In My Dreams, a Music Alliance Pact exclusive download.

ENGLAND: The Guardian Music Blog
Sarah Young – Ajambo Si
Sarah Young, noted the Guardian’s New Band of the Day writer, is the queen of moombahton, the genre that fuses Dutch house and reggaeton, soca and dancehall. If anyone is going to cross over and “do a Katy B”, as such a manoeuvre is becoming known, it’s this 22-year-old graduate of the Academy of Contemporary Music turned DJ, producer and all-round moom-bassador. Ajambo Si, the opening track on her new EP, features Lioness and Slick Don and is based on a kuduro rhythm, but to the NBotD writer it sounded “like dubstep meets dancehall or Caribbean grime, like Dizzee if he went to St Lucia on holiday and never came back”.

FINLAND: Glue
All Will Be Quiet – The First Day Pt. 2
Post-rock band All Will Be Quiet releases its debut album On The First Day this month. It is a concept record about the collapse and rebirth of society with an optimistic view on the how the future will be for mankind. Equally ambitious is The First Day Pt. 2, a grandiose and cinematic instrumental song that opens the second part of the album.

FRANCE: Yet You’re Fired
Birkii – Holy War
Birkii brought us the joyful pop song Shade Of Doubt last year on the great Kitsuné Parisien compilation, and then appeared in many mixes and playlists, including Edwin van Cleef’s April mixtape. Now she’s back with Holy War, a catchy synth-pop song from Kitsuné Parisien II that will also be on her debut EP out on June 4, with remixes from Equateur, Pol Rax, Pegase (last month’s MAP artist) and Zemaria.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
Christian Loeffler – Eleven (feat. Mohna)
There are many subtle things in Christian Loeffler’s debut A Forest which make his music very contemporary – there is swishing, there is rustling, there is clacking, there is tinging. In the pleasantly moody track Eleven, Mohna, singer of former MAP band Me Succeeds, adds another level to Loeffler’s calm but vivid opus.

ICELAND: Rjóminn
The Lovely Lion – Into The Forest
Representing the new wave of Icelandic folk-pop revival, The Lovely Lion are ones to watch for the future. Though this young and extremely talented band have only recorded a handful of songs and are still unsigned, their unique approach to songwriting and polished sound is sure to grab the attention of music lovers everywhere.

INDONESIA: Deathrockstar
AAS – Bonaparte
Raw, lo-fi, angry dark punk from Medan with added passion about world history which leads us to a song about Napoleon Bonaparte.

IRELAND: Nialler9
Not Squares – Fall Far
Northern Irish electro punks Not Squares have ditched the ultra high-energy in favour of a more restrained dancefloor synth-pop sound for their new single. While Fall Far’s new direction can be compared to the kind of stuff coming out on the Kitsuné label, it must be said that this is a very good look and a surprising one for the band. The best Irish song released in April bar none.

ITALY: Polaroid
The Mojomatics – You Are The Reason For My Trouble
You Are The Reason For My Trouble is the fourth album by The Mojomatics, one the best and coolest garage rock bands around Italy and Europe. The duo from Venice brings into their sound echoes of Rolling Stones, Kinks and Dylan, but what I deeply love about their songs and concerts is their tireless energy.

JAPAN: Make Believe Melodies
Wallflower – Cure Your Heart
Indie-pop music never left Japan, as bands trying to sound twee have been popping up since the C86 tape dropped. Yet this year has seen a boom in jangly rock groups, with Osaka outfit Wallflower being one of the catchiest. They take cues from The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart and even opened for that American band when they came to Japan earlier this year. This song shows they learned well from The Pains, as they nail dreamy indie-pop yearning in just over three minutes.

MALTA: Stagedive Malta
Stolen Creep – Throw Your Heart To The Sea
Stolen Creep is the brainchild of childhood friends Marie Borg Alden (guitars, vocals) and Rebecca Theuma (drums). The band has had many different members, recently settling into the current line-up of Marie, Rebecca and Katryna Storace (guitars, vocals). Following a busy year of writing, rewriting and rehearsals, they chose their favourite songs and retreated to record their first EP, Throw Your Heart To The Sea.

MEXICO: Red Bull Panamérika
Andy Mountains – Hoy Me Gusta Mi Peinado
The title of this song, translated into English, is “Today, I Like My Hair”. With the naive viewpoint of early college students, this Mexico City quintet portrait everyday existential nuances with an optimism only an iPod advertisement would reach. But don’t classify Andy Mountains as cheap, feelgood jingle-makers. Their sound thrives in high-brow references that go from Animal Collective to the minimalism of La Monte Young. Give this tune a try and have a good hair day!

PERU: SoTB
Audioley – Same Old
Audioley is a new project by Francois Peglau and Jules Drade, two Peruvian musicians based in London. Audioley started as an experiment, with the duo meeting one night every week to make a song a day. First single Same Old is feelgood electronic pop and comes with a curious and funny video.

PORTUGAL: Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
T(h)ree – Starlight
T(h)ree was featured in MAP in February 2011. T(h)ree is not a band but a project which brings together musicians/bands from Portugal and, for this second volume, Philippines and Singapore. In the featured track, we have Stealing Orchestra (Portugal), Maze (Portugal) and The Analog Girl (Singapore) playing together.

PUERTO RICO: Puerto Rico Indie
Harry Rag – Tiny Painting
Harry Rag is the solo project of Kristian Prieto (Coleco, Alegría Rampante), who wanted to figure out just how many sounds and moods he could generate with his acoustic guitar. Prieto has released seven ‘web albums’ under the Harry Rag name, all recorded in his bedroom straight to a four-track, each one expanding on his guitar experiments and polishing up his sound. Tiny Painting is a great recent example of his prowess as a young musician and is taken from his latest album, The Ghastly Adventures Of Ghost Goat.

ROMANIA: Babylon Noise
Jazzadezz – Fairy
Jazzadezz is a dream pop/new wave band formed by Alin Zabrauteanu (synths, guitar, production) and Dezdemona Mihaescu (vocals). For their 2010 debut album Inimani Mal, Calin Torsan (Domnisoara Pogany and NU & Apa Neagră) joined the band playing clarinet, recorder and caval. In 2012, another two members were added, Alex Stanciu on guitar (also in Domnisoara Pogany) and drummer Eduard Gabia, a renowned choreographer and contemporary artist. The second album, Panta Rhei, was released last month and experiments in new areas such as ambient, post-rock and trip-hop.

RUSSIA: Big Echo
2muchachos – Striwi Kri4at
Striwi Kri4at is a beautiful instrumental piece from romantic dream pop band 2muchachos, who released their Vesnywki!! EP last month, a perfect soundtrack for spring.

SINGAPORE: I’m Waking Up To…
Sze Kiat – Once In A While
No man is an island, yet one gets the sense that the musical ideas that transpire in Sze Kiat’s mind were born from the stillness of time. There’s an unhurried approach to his songwriting and an intimacy that evokes a strain that could only come from a sort of crying out from some terrifying or forsaken place. Featuring traditional Chinese stringed instruments such as the erhu and the zhongruan, the sparse instrumentation serves as the background to Sze Kiat’s simple yet emotive lyrics.

SOUTH AFRICA: Musical Mover & Shaker!
Nate Maingard – The Open Space
Nate Maingard is an indie-folk singer-songwriter from Cape Town whose music often brings the likes of Damien Rice, Coldplay and Jack Johnson to mind. His voice has been compared to Thom Yorke and Ben Gibbard, and his easy style and sense of melody shine through on The Open Space with a passionate undertone throughout.

SOUTH KOREA: Korean Indie
E9 – My Little Flutter
E9, short for Edward Nine, wish to combine the pureness of Edward Scissorhands with the rampage of Nine Inch Nails. Their sound is influenced by groups like Placebo and Muse, while their lyrics tell fairy tales. The band has been around for several years and are preparing to release their first EP. My Little Flutter is a perfect sample of E9′s mixture of grunge, punk and Britpop with electronic sounds.

SPAIN: Musikorner
Boreals – Luciérnagas
Boreals are probably younger than any of you beloved MAP readers but that doesn’t mean they don’t know what they’re doing. And what they do is deliver a fine mixture of cosmic post-rock (clearly influenced by Explosions In The Sky) embellished with clouds of synths that makes their sound epic and heart-touching, just as post-rock should. Luciérnagas, one of their most atmospheric tracks, is taken from their second EP, Grecia, released through Barcelona-based label Irregular, home of former MAP acts Lasers and The Suicide Of Western Culture.

SWEDEN: Swedesplease
Skatan – Control
The new record from Skatan is out on May 23 and is called Seven Trees. The first single, Control, features a little more eclectic instrumentation than in the past and Simone Andersson Wingfors’ voice is less processed and more immediate, resulting in a song that hits all the right chords.

SWITZERLAND: 78s
Baba Shrimps – Angel
This five-piece from Zurich play impulsive pop music with a blend of country and rock. Baba Shrimps will release a new record at the end of 2012, but to shorten the waiting time they have dropped a live version of a new, unreleased song called Angel.

TURKEY: WEARTBEAT
Solardip – Leap Of Faith
With their French electro/indie-influenced sound, Solardip is one of the few live acts of their genre in the country. In a short time, these three Istanbul youngsters have attracted a big audience. Debut album Future Now came out in March through Remoov Records after the release of the spectacular single and sexy video of Dance Like Wolves.

UNITED STATES: I Guess I’m Floating
Nicole Miglis – Stay Small
There’s no hiding my affection for Gainesville’s Hundred Waters, one of 2012′s best new bands. Just as bewilderingly complete, elegant and worth exploring is the solo work of their frontwoman, Nicole Miglis. Stay Small is from her debut self-titled EP, which you can download for free here.

VENEZUELA: Música y Más
Ulises Hadjis – Donde Va
Ulises Hadjis is a young artist from Maracaibo. Despite his fledgling career, he already has two albums and a Latin Grammy as a music producer to his name. His second record, Cosas Perdidas, was released last month. In his own words, it is “an honest collection of songs” and shows more maturity in his lyrics and compositions than its predecessor, Presente.

It’s T Break time and I made the awful, awful mistake of looking back at the comments left on last year’s post. Haters, get a grip.

Let’s just pre-empt all the usual sniping about the quality of the talent, the lack of representation from outside the Central Belt, the clear favouritism of the judges, the “whiny, nasal, Scottish accent that seems the be the preserve of boys in plaid shirts that are studying English lit at Uni”, the fact that it’s all so terribly insignificant, the “ironic glasses, beards and fringes”… and just say congratulations to all 16 acts for getting on the bill for T in the Park 2012 alongside Olly Murs, Cher Lloyd, Jessie J, Dappy, The Wanted and McFly.

ANDERSON, MCGINTY, WEBSTER, WARD AND FISHER
Base: Dundee
Did you know? AMWWF’s management company have also looked after Broken Records and The View
Facebook: facebook.com/AndersonMcGintyWebsterWardandFisher
Twitter: twitter.com/amwwfmusic
Audio: Anderson, McGinty, Webster, Ward And Fisher – (Might As Well) Trust In Me

BACCHANAL PARTY
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? The band are giving away their debut album as a free download
Facebook: facebook.com/bacchanalparty
Twitter: twitter.com/bacchanalparty
Audio: Bacchanal Party - We Missed Half The Night

BEERJACKET
Base: Airdrie
Did you know? Peter Kelly is a high-school English teacher by day
Facebook: facebook.com/beerjacket
Twitter: twitter.com/beerjacket
Audio: Beerjacket – Cave

BLANK CANVAS
Base: Edinburgh
Did you know? Blank Canvas are managed by Curious Joe blogger Hamish Gibson
Facebook: facebook.com/blankcanvas1
Twitter: twitter.com/blankcanvas1
Audio: Blank Canvas – By The Fire

BROWN BEAR & THE BANDITS
Base: Largs
Did you know? The band won the Best Acoustic category at this year’s Scottish Alternative Music Awards
Facebook: facebook.com/brownbearandthebandits
Twitter: twitter.com/brownbearbandit
Audio: Brown Bear & The Bandits – War Of Loves

CAPITALS
Base: Edinburgh
Did you know? Capitals will play Summerfest – the “world’s largest music festival” – in Milwaukee on June 30
Facebook: facebook.com/Capitalsmusic
Twitter: twitter.com/capitalsmusic
Audio: Capitals – Rules And Stakes

CHRIS DEVOTION AND THE EXPECTATIONS
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? Singer Chris Devotion (not his real surname) was in the same primary school class as me
Facebook: facebook.com/chrisdevotionmusic
Twitter: twitter.com/cdandtheex
Audio: Chris Devotion And The Expectations – A Modest Refusal

CRUSADES
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? Guitarist Mark Higgins sliced through his pinkie during the band’s first ever gig in March and needed four stitches
Facebook: facebook.com/crusadesglasgow
Twitter: twitter.com/crusadesband
Audio: Crusades - Pseudo Andro

DAVEY HORNE
Base: Falkirk
Did you know? Lana Del Rey is quoting as saying “What a voice! I really enjoyed that show”  after seeing Davey play at King Tut’s last year
Facebook: facebook.com/daveyhorne
Twitter: twitter.com/daveyhorne
Audio: Davey Horne – Last Train Home

NEVADA BASE
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? The band covered All The Things She Said by t.A.T.u. for a charity compilation
Facebook: facebook.com/nevadabase
Twitter: twitter.com/nevadabase
Audio: Nevada Base – An Avenue

OPEN SWIMMER
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? Frontman Ben Talbot-Dunn is from Freemantle, Australia and used to play under the solo guise Ben TD
Facebook: facebook.com/openswimmer
Twitter: twitter.com/openswimmer
Audio: Open Swimmer – Nineteen

RANDOLPH’S LEAP
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? After releasing their debut EP, Battleships & Kettle Chips, the band were sent 32 complementary bags of Kettle Chips by the company who makes them
Facebook: facebook.com/RandolphsLeap
Twitter: n/a
Audio: Randolph’s Leap – Crisps

ROMAN NOSE
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? Roman Nose played on the same bill as 2manydjs last Hogmanay
Facebook: facebook.com/pages/Roman-Nose/212148628857310
Twitter: twitter.com/RMNOSE
Audio: Roman Nose – Satan Pump

TEKLO
Base: Glasgow
Did you know? TeKlo’s remix of Benny Banks track Bada Bing was put out by major label 679 (Warner Music) in March
Facebook: facebook.com/TeKloMusic
Twitter: twitter.com/teklomusic
Audio: TeKlo – Join The Club

THE MACHINE ROOM
Base: Edinburgh
Did you know? The Machine Room launched the Tape Singles Club with Dead Boy Robotics in tribute to Edinburgh’s TAPE studio
Facebook: facebook.com/themachineroom
Twitter: twitter.com/the_machineroom
Audio: The Machine Room – Cherry Pie

THE MIRROR TRAP
Base: Dundee
Did you know? The band supported Placebo at Edinburgh’s Picture House last month after former Scotland footballer Lee Wilkie, who now works for a music management company which represents Placebo, read an article about The Mirror Trap in The Sun and put them forward for the gig
Facebook: www.facebook.com/mirrortrap
Twitter: twitter.com/themirrortrap
Audio: The Mirror Trap – Statues

When did we all become completely normalised by the spectacle of both sexes pissing against the perimeter fence of a festival site? At what point did punters just accept that a couple of hundred quid for a ticket won’t get you within 50ft of a headlining act without pushing to the front at least half-an-hour before they’re due on?

It didn’t take long for Brew at the Bog to make me realise the things I don’t miss about its much larger counterparts, or that being at a music festival need not feel akin to spending the day at an international airport if the organisers take a common sense approach to freedom of movement.

But the one thing last Saturday at Bogbain Farm in Inverness confirmed more than anything else is that up-and-coming Scottish artists deserve much better than to be rounded up and confined to a T Break Stage or a Solus Tent or a Sound City Stage. Bands such as Three Blind Wolves, Fatherson, Endor and Washington Irving already have the songs and the presence to handle a main stage billing at any festival in the country, yet prime slots are instead offered to fly-by-night acts with London booking agents or, worse still, reduced to serving the purpose of competition prize and publicity stunt.

The 600 punters who attended the first ever Brew at the Bog had a choice of three stages (one outdoors, one a barn sponsored by goNORTH, the other a cosy space with chairs and tables which became increasingly popular as the unseasonably cold temperatures cruelly bit at Bogbain Farm) and a roll call of around 30 Scottish acts and a handful of foreign artists.

The distant rumble of Cherri Fosphate literally lured me away from the hot beverages on arrival and they made a great impression with their accessible guitar sound which clearly owes a lot to We Were Promised Jetpacks, but with vocals more like Robert Smith.

Café Disco brought some lively indie-pop as one of the few acts who turned up the noise in The Bothy, which was otherwise predominantly acoustic, and their newer songs came across particularly well.

Fatherson continue to be an intriguing preposition - a rock band who don’t play that loud, and one with a convincing frontman in Ross Leighton who has a canny knack of writing exceptionally good songs that lend themselves to massive singalongs. Not to mention the happiest on-stage musician I’ve ever seen in bass player Marc Strain.

Quickbeam made beautiful sounds, as they always do, but their set had to compete with a chatty crowd, and I came away thinking that festivals don’t really suit a band who play as quietly as they do. Which is very quiet, all the time.

Beerjacket also had to fight to be heard at times, but he fared much better, silencing the room with his stand-up offering of Poor Captain Of The Soul on ukulele and reaching a peak with the fast, fantastic Cave.

In a weird kind of way, watching Endor play on an outdoor stage to an audience who seemed to know all the lyrics was a dream come true for me. Their show was full of verve, they engaged the crowd and they didn’t play a song that was anything other than magnificent.

Three Blind Wolves were perhaps even more remarkable. I hadn’t ever thought of myself as a big fan of their music, but Ross Clark and his chums gave the performance of the day with their ballsy take on Americana delivered with bundles of energy and exhilaration.

Despite suffering what looked like a fairly significant technical failure, Over The Wall’s enthusiasm carried them through, their two members doing some amusing choreographed moves for one song before ending with the ever-joyful Thurso.

Washington Irving gave Brew at the Bog a send-off that will live long in the memory as main stage headliners with a set full of raucous folk-rock and Pogues-esque party spirit.

Given the awe-inspiring scenery at our disposal, it wasn’t too hard to persuade Beerjacket to let me film him playing an unreleased song called Two Travel to some horses, check it out here:

Cherri Fosphate – Passion

Fatherson – Gone Fission

Three Blind Wolves – Black Bowl Park

Over The Wall – Thurso

The beauty of gig photography is how great a leveller it is. Admittedly, privileged access and quality equipment make a massive difference but, when it really comes down to it, you use the same criteria for analysing what makes a good shot of Bono as you would for Bronto Skylift.

Pictures of both can be found within a few feet of each other at the SoundExposed exhibition in East Kilbride Arts Centre, along with a further 82 photos which either feature Scottish musicians or have been taken at a Scottish venue.

The purpose of SoundExposed is to showcase some of the best music photography in Scotland, something I’ve been proud to promote for the past few years through The Pop Cop’s annual competition.

The exhibition features the work of 18 snappers, amateur and professional, and the esteemed work of the likes of Euan Robertson, Ingrid Mur, Emily Wylde, Brian Vass and Andy Thorn and Alex Woodward might be familiar to those with a keen interest in music photography.

The gallery space is split into two rooms, with equal billing given to lesser-known and even-your-dad-would-have-head-of-them acts. If you can tell your Korn from your Carnivores, I recommend indulging in a game of ‘Guess Who?’ using the information handouts. The score to beat is 33/84.

Photographer James Gray, who has eye-catching shots of Green Day, Biffy Clyro, Kasabian, The Subways, United Fruit on display, organised SoundExposed.

James: “I was aware there were a number of photographers who had a passion for music photography and, like me, wanted to see their work displayed in its own right rather than in a gig review or on a band’s website. I pitched the idea to East Kilbride Arts Centre and they called my bluff and agreed to make their gallery available for a month-long exhibition.

“It has been a great experience organising the exhibition and there has been talk of taking it to other venues and perhaps running a similar event in the future. I already have a few ideas on some alternative themes. I would also love to get involved in some projects working with young bands and photographers to promote the importance, relevance and value of music photography.”

SoundExposed runs at East Kilbride Arts Centre until May 20 (10am-8pm daily, free entry)

Once upon a time, it really did feel like the number of miles a Scottish musician lived from London was equivalent to their odds of potential success. However, that scenario has changed in the past five years or so, almost without any recognition or acknowledgement. You need only look at Scotland’s biggest exports – the likes of Biffy Clyro, Belle & Sebastian, Franz Ferdinand and Amy Macdonald – to find examples of artists who have had no trouble carving out fruitful careers while still happily residing in their countries of origin.

Nevertheless, there’s no denying London is still a starry-eyed draw for many up-and-coming musicians, which is why three young Scots are about to head to the (other) capital in pursuit of their dreams. And since the spotlight is on London in Olympic year, it seemed liked the ideal excuse to unite the trio with two former exiled Scots for a colour-coded Pop Cop feature devoted to the Big Smoke, starting with none other than Bombay Bicycle Club’s latest recruit.

AMBER WILSON

Amber Wilson has already had an eventful music career for one so young. In 2007, at the age of just 20, she was plucked from relative obscurity in Aberdeen to become temporary lead vocalist for Morcheeba, going on a European tour with the band. More recently, she has been building up her profile as a solo artist, but on May 3 she moves to Woolwich in London to take up her new role as session singer for Bombay Bicycle Club (replacing the fantastic Lucy Rose), leaping straight into a hectic live itinerary that will see her criss-cross Europe and North America.

Amber: “I opened my Gmail one day and there was an email from Adam Falkner (One Eskimo and former drummer for Amy Macdonald) asking if I’d fancy some session work in London. He’d seen me sing years ago at The Tunnels supporting Amy. He recommended me to Bombay’s manager and effectively got me the job. Thanks Adam! I went down to London and had an informal sing-song with the guys. I guess you could say it was an audition.

“I’m a bit scared but also really excited about living in London. I’m looking forward to meeting new people and fellow musicians, and seeing what the scene has to offer. In saying that, between touring and visiting home, I’m not going to be there all that much. Bombay is going to take priority just now, at least until the end of the year. I’m recording a few things with my boyfriend on my downtime and my main aim is to find a publishing deal.”

Which Olympic sport would you be best at?
Amber: “Wrestling.”

Amber Wilson – Let Down

MIKE NISBET

Oban-born singer-songwriter Mike Nisbet will move to Hackney on June 13, but the 23-year-old with the soothing voice and poignant lyrics is no stranger to London.

Mike: “I lived in London over the winter of 2009/10 and loved every minute of it. I spent six months throwing myself about the city and eventually burnt out, so I returned to Glasgow. There has always been a nagging in the back of my head calling me back to London since I bailed out. Unfinished business you might say. It’s the most incredible city I’ve ever set foot in.

“At the moment I intend to stay indefinitely. I’ll have lived in four different places within eight months once I arrive in London, so I think it’s about time I stopped. In saying that, the only constant of the past few years has been that there will be change. I’m open to whatever comes my way. There are so many places to play, people to meet and friends to be made – eight million of them. I’ve just got to trust that my tunes are worth a listen and hope people connect with them. Being honest with the music and going on gut instinct has got me this far.”

Which Olympic sport would you be best at?
Mike: “Synchronised Swimming.”

Mike Nisbet – Not Long

May 15, Bloc, Glasgow (free)
June 2, Dirty Weekender, Kilmarnock (tickets)

SIOBHAN WILSON

Since moving back to her native Scotland last year after an unexpected pop career in France, Siobhan Wilson has divided her time between playing bass for indie-rock darlings Friends In America and forging ahead with her solo craft. On May 14, she moves to London.

Siobhan: “My pals Cat, Kitty and Jenny stay in a lovely wee house with a garden in Shepherd’s Bush. I lived with them when we were teenagers at St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh. I’ve been doing pop music for ages so it’ll be nice to be surrounded by some classical musicians again. Most of my friends and family live in Glasgow, Paris or London, so London means I can get to those places and anywhere else quite easily. I also heard rumours that there were more jobs in London.

“Sometimes I just move city for a bit of a change/for fun/I get restless. I am inspired by new places and people. In September 2006, I was supposed to be starting a gap year in France and I didn’t leave Paris for five years. In February 2011, I was supposed to take a six-month break in Scotland then go back to Paris and it has now been a year in Glasgow. I’ve noticed that when I’m content with my lifestyle and motivated and inspired, it gives me an energy which just makes my career go well and run smoothly. If, however, no-one in London notices me/likes my music I’ll probably just say ‘oh well’ and come back to Glasgow, defeated.”

Which Olympic sport would you be best at?
Siobhan: “Shooting.”

Siobhan Wilson – Voir Un Ami Pleurer

May 3: The Art School, Glasgow (info)
May 13: The Old Hairdressers, Glasgow

EMMA’S IMAGINATION

By the age of 26, wanderlust had already seen Emma Gillespie reside in places as far-flung as Glasgow, Cumbria, Galloway, Australia and New Zealand. But in 2010, her world turned upside down in a very different sense when she won a one-off primetime TV talent contest which resulted in her relocating to London and spending a year there (latterly in the Brick Lane area) before moving back up north.

Emma: “I got signed to a major record label (Polydor) and they told me they needed me to move down to London ASAP to record an album. It was quite a shock. Everything is much faster paced and people are generally in a rush to get to where they’re going, so you can get swallowed up in the crowd and feel like a little fish in a massive pond. I ended up staying for a year which was the perfect amount of time to make some good connections and get experience of the music industry.

“In the end, I really missed my friends and I started to feel quite lost and suffocated in London. I felt like it was wearing me down and I needed to come back to refresh my head and get some space and perspective to be able to write again. Glasgow has always felt like home to me and I love the music scene up here. I think in the past it was necessary to go to London if you wanted to ‘make it’ but nowadays everything is much more accessible because of the internet so you don’t have to move down there any more.”

Which Olympic sport would you be best at?
Emma: “High jump – I was third in Scotland for under-16s!”

Emma’s Imagination – Faerie Lights

KATIE SUTHERLAND

After signing a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell when she was 20, Katie Sutherland stayed in Kilburn, London between 2008-2010, having previously only ever lived in Glasgow and her parents’ house in Kirkintilloch.

Katie: “The first time I visited London was quite a scary experience. I was 19, had never left home before (except for a few holidays with friends), had about four songs and knew no-one. When I actually moved to London, though, I was used to it. I was already spending more than half my time there and spending a ridiculous amount of money half-living in hotels and commuting. Even the Travelodges aren’t cheap there so I decided to rent.

“By this point I had gigged constantly around Scotland by myself and picked up a very small fanbase. Now was the time to write more songs so I was sent to London for writing sessions. I could have stayed up in Glasgow and written by myself but I was eager to learn more and meet people, which, to be fair, is very important. It was never a permanent thing, just ideal for that time. I moved back two-and-a-half years ago having written about 150 songs.”

Which Olympic sport would you be best at?
Katie: “Badminton for sure.”

Katie Sutherland – Slamming Doors

May 5: The Big Stooshie, Fife (tickets)

The programme for this summer’s West End Festival in Glasgow has been revealed and it’s a typically diverse jumble of music, comedy, exhibitions, children’s events, film, talks, theatre, dance, literature and posh walks.

It’s only the first of that list (yes, so uncultured) that this post is dedicated to, the highlights of which are below.

The undeniable show-stopper is the From A Stolen Sea-organised all-day bonanza at Oran Mor on June 24 featuring a dozen of Scotland’s most respected and bedazzling artists, while there are also intriguing showcases from Electric Honey, Overlook Records and Scottish Fiction to look forward to.

ORAN MOR
June 1: Electric Honey showcase feat French Wives + Young Aviators + Woodenbox + Danny Aubrey (tickets)
June 3: James Yorkston + Seamus Fogarty (tickets)
June 4: Roddy Woomble (tickets)
June 7: Stevie Jackson (tickets)
June 10: Lucy Rose (tickets)
June 24:  (Auditorium) We Were Promised Jetpacks + Remember Remember +  Miaoux Miaoux + Monoganon; (Venue) Aidan Moffat & Bill Wells + Withered Hand + RM Hubbert + John Knox Sex Club + Olympic Swimmers + Gav Prentice; (Bar) Wounded Knee + theapplesofenergy (tickets)

CAPTAIN’S REST
June 2: Overlook Records 1st Birthday Festival feat Trapped In Kansas + The Darien Venture + Salò + So Many Animal Calls + Bellow Below + Vasa + Crusades (tickets)
June 3: Woodenbox (afternoon tickets/evening tickets)
June 14: The State Broadcasters + Endor + Randolph’s Leap
June 16: Communion Glasgow feat The Sunshine Social + Pale Seas
June 17: Scottish Fiction Presents feat Michael Cassidy + The Spook School + Queen Jane + Saint Death (tickets)

AN CLACHAN, KELVINGROVE PARK
June 10: Live At The Kelvingrove Bowl feat Warren McIntyre & The Starry Skies + The Starlets + Stevie Jackson + The Parsonage Choir (free)

COTTIERS
June 21: Callum Baird (tickets)

Young Aviators – Hunting for Heaven by Young_Aviators

Endor – The Observer

Lucy Rose – Middle Of The Bed

Olympic Swimmers – Where It Snows

This is a photo of every compact disc, vinyl record and cassette that remains in my home. One box. One pathetic box that’s barely half-full. As you can see there is no vinyl because I have never owned a turntable and there are no tapes because they were a shit way to listen to music in the 90s and have not magically become any less shit now no matter what colour they come in.

I apologise that this article about Record Store Day did not begin with me glorifying the relevance of physical music products or coming up with absurd ways to describe the smell of second-hand 12″s or getting all doe-eyed about album artwork or finding weird comfort in shuffling up and down the cramped aisles of independent record stores.

No matter how hard I try, I just can’t relate to any of this. And I have tried. This time last year, I attempted to squeeze out some sinew of sentimentality from what remains of my non-mp3 record collection and the best I could come up with was a post about Frightened Rabbit demos. On a CD-R. Desperate.

I’ve visited the majority of record stores in the Central Belt (one notable exception is Avalanche in Edinburgh, although I have genuine fears they don’t let customers leave until they’ve bought at least one copy of the Star Press Wheel album) but I inevitably end up disappointed when I realise that anything I might consider purchasing can be found more cheaply online. And with less packaging. And by less packaging I mean no packaging.

My complete indifference and emotional detachment towards the baggage that comes with songs even affects how I treat mp3s.

Downloaded albums usually contain jpegs of the cover artwork embedded into the metadata of each individual song – and it annoys the hell out of me. Not only do these files steal space, they only become visible on your computer (see below) after you checkmark the Show Hidden Folders, Files option. And even when you delete them, which I do, they have this Jesus gene that makes them return from the dead a few days later. Unlike the self-proclaimed S of G, these clandestine little files don’t fuck off for good on Ascension Day.

So, yeah, the fifth annual Record Store Day is on Saturday, April 21. I’ve gathered together a list of events happening in Scotland to mark the occasion so that you can watch some bands playing live as they distract you from buying limited edition cassettes which will gather dust after you’ve taken advantage of the download code. Awesome.

GLASGOW
Love Music
Dolalay (1.30pm), Cathode Ray (2pm), White Heath (2.30pm), French Wives (3pm), Woodenbox (4pm), The Murderburgers (4.30pm), Admiral Fallow (5pm) (info)
Monorail
JD Twitch DJ set (3pm), Organs Of Love (4pm), Gerard Love DJ set (4.30pm), Human Don’t Be Angry (5.30pm), Stuart Braithwaite DJ set (6pm), Snowgoose (7pm), The Brogues DJ set (7.30pm), Linden, Edwyn Collins & Dead Flamingos (8.30pm), Adele Bethel DJ set (10pm) (info)
Rubadub
Joy Orbison
That’s Entertainment
Atom Falling (12.30) + Scunner (2pm) + Dirty Keys (4pm)
Nice N Sleazy
Call To Mind (2pm) + Any Colour Black (3pm) + Withered Hand (5pm); followed by ticketed Insularis Records gig downstairs (8pm) featuring Holy Mountain + What The Blood Revealed + Adam Stafford + The Phantom Band DJ set (info)
Tchai Ovna
The Barents Sea + Jonathan Snee (8pm) (info)

EDINBURGH
Avalanche Records
Withered Hand (2pm) + Gordon McIntyre (Ballboy) (3pm) + Ryan Hannigan (Star Wheel Press) masterclass on how to make album covers; followed by ticketed Avalanche co-promoted gig at Electric Circus (7pm) featuring Star Wheel Press + The Last Battle + Emily Scott (info)
VoxBox Music
PAWS (3pm) + Neil Pennycook (Meursault) (4pm) (info)
Coda
Lorraine McCauley (3pm) +Rura (3.45pm) + Andi Neate (4.15pm)
Underground Solu’shn
Stephen Brown + Craig Smith + Linkwood + Fudge Fingas + Lord of the Isles + River of Slime (info)

ABERDEEN
One Up
Craig John Davidson (1pm) + Amy Sawers (2pm)+ Dry The River (4pm) (info)

STIRLING
Europa Music
The Media Whores (12pm) + Colin James Murphy (12.45pm) + Debrasco (1.30pm) + Rail Fan (2.15pm) + The OK Social Club (3pm) + Craig Hughes (3.30pm) + Dog Moon Howl (3.45pm) (info)

INVERNESS
Imperial Music
Iain McLaughlin (1pm) + Naked Red (2.30pm)

Call To Mind – A9

Dry The River – Coast

I first heard this walloping track by JERC a month ago to the day, and here it is on the Music Alliance Pact as The Pop Cop’s pick for Scotland. Check out more from the Aberdeen whizzkid on SoundCloud.

If you’re in the mood to expand your musical horizons, there’s an eclectic mixture of free tunes to discover from all corners of the globe – the ones from Canada, Denmark, France and Ireland are particularly rocking my world. This month’s MAP also includes an mp3 from band of the moment Alabama Shakes courtesy of our friends in America.

Click the play button icon to listen to individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the whole 35-track compilation through Ge.tt here.

SCOTLAND: The Pop Cop
JERC – ADHD
JERC is the alter-ego of self-confessed music obsessive James Campbell. The 22-year-old from Aberdeen started producing hip-hop tracks for local artists when he was a teenager before moving on to DJing in clubs, remixing and setting up his own label, Why Not Records. Most significantly, he is creating his own solo work and the pounding, delirious, sleazy-synthed electro house of ADHD is as intoxicating a debut track as you could ever hope to discover.

April 28, The Forum, Aberdeen (tickets)

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Diosque – Melancolía Del Futuro
Diosque is a singer-songwriter born in Tucumán. Melancolía Del Futuro is our favorite song from his brand new album, Bote, in which Diosque enjoys playing with samplers and acoustic instruments like guitars and percussion. It was released by QQ Records on vinyl and can also be downloaded for free by visiting his website.

AUSTRIA: Walzerkönig
A Thousand Fuegos – No Up No Down
“Don’t you know that everything we build up once will fall apart someday?” Time and religious metaphors are recurring themes on The Treachery Of Things, from which No Up No Down is taken. The album circles around the notion that we can never grasp the true identity of the things around us; they remain passive while we assign attributes to them. A Thousand Fuegos started out as a lo-fi project and these days focuses on beats, loops and spacey synths that create a mystical atmosphere.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
Siba – Canoa Furada
Canoa Furada is one of the liveliest songs from Siba’s new album Avante, on which the unusual formation of his band stands out with a fanfare vibe and a cool feeling that combines contemporary music and regional rhythms. Avante is available to download for free at Siba’s website.

CANADA: Quick Before It Melts
Kalle Mattson – Water Falls
Kalle Mattson recently racked up over a million views of their Thick As Thieves video, which is impressive for any indie band. The attention generated by the video shouldn’t be dismissed as hype. Kalle Mattson are impressive songwriters and musicians, and have fans across Canada eagerly awaiting their new EP (from which Water Falls comes from) at the start of May.

CHILE: Super 45
Poki Tatane – Esclavos Rumbo Al Virreinato
Behind the peculiar name of Poki Tatane hides one of the most interesting projects in the Chilean electronic scene. Esclavos Rumbo Al Virreinato is from his first EP, Breve Explicación De Las Partes (available for free at Discos Pegaos), which takes elements from a more organic dubstep, adding a particularly melodic sense to the compositions.

CHINA: Wooozy
Xiban – Drunk Ghost
Xiban is a contemporary world music band who describe themselves as being “fresh, wild, wandering, funny, and direct”, with the added tag of “folk music phoenix nirvana” thrown in for good measure. The musicians are from China, France and the United States. Combine Shanxi opera with Beijing and Jiangzhou drumming, add some Yellow River chanting, Tibetan long tune, Australian Aboriginal music, Indian organs and elements of modern electronic music and you have an idea of how eclectic their brand of music is.

COLOMBIA: El Parlante Amarillo
Crew Peligrosos – Medayork
From Medellín, we present you Crew Peligrosos – 16 people tearing up the scene with their urban sounds and mise-en-scène. Medayork contains the best flavors of old school hip hop with the song title paying tribute to two cities key to the development of hip hop culture in Colombia – Medellín and New York.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
Lydmor – Lamppost Light
This acoustic version of Lamppost Light was (and is) originally a video shot in a theater in Denmark’s second city, Aarhus. But since I really, really like Lydmor aka Jenny Rossander’s take on her otherwise electrofied pop self, I had my people tell her people to give all you people the song as a MAP exclusive. Oh, and if you want to watch the video here it is.

ENGLAND: The Guardian Music Blog
Seye – White Noise (Olugbenga Edit)
Seye Adelekan’s urgent floor-stomper gets held gently by the shoulders and told to take a minute thanks to a pitched-up, slowed-down remix by the Nigerian-born scenester’s older brother, Metronomy bassist Olubenga Adelekan. Seye, who’s been a gun for hire for Lana Del Rey, The Noisettes and Ellie Goulding in the past, is just coming into his own through an upcoming debut album of globe-trotting pop that had the Guardian’s Paul Lester hail the Bromley-based star as “like a younger, cooler Paul Simon around the time of his African adventure or Peter Gabriel circa So”. If Seye’s original suggests the woozy slip of a party on the turn, Gbenga’s remix is the regretful aftermath.

FINLAND: Glue
Weepikes – What About
Weepikes was an alternative rock band in Helsinki that called it a day in 1997 after three intense years. A little wiser, a little older, the band reformed some months ago and recorded new songs with the help of American producer and musician Kramer. Now Weepikes are ready to deliver more of their characteristic blend of punk and progressive rock, or, as a journalist called it back in the day, PRONK.

FRANCE: Yet You’re Fired
Pegase – Without Reasons
Pegase, known for being the singer of the successful band Minitel Rose, started his solo project with the single Without Reasons. Its immediate appeal lies in the fragile emotion it emanates, the simple rhythm backed by airy and cold synths, and a superb, dreamy choir. Signed to the same label as Rhum For Pauline, Pegase will, without a doubt, be just as successful. Watch the wonderful video for Without Reasons here.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
Hundreds – Fighter
The music of Hundreds is breathing, a bit like an asthmatic whose gasps always make a little swish. The Milner siblings tend to garnish their songs carefully, patterns of shivery sounds which texture warm rhythm beats, airy and clasping at the same time. Fighter is taken from their free Under The Icicles EP, which you can download via the lovely label Sinnbus.

GREECE: Mouxlaloulouda
Thanos Anestopoulos – Xanarthan Ta Sunnefa
After the blossoms of a long journey with Diafana Krina, Thanos Anestopoulos blazes his own musical trail with a beautiful, bleak and intimate solo album. Os To Telos (“To The End”) is brimmed full of personal memories and wrapped in warmth and emotional sincerity. It works best as a concise listen, as each song segues naturally into the next. Xanarthan Ta Sunnefa (“The Clouds Have Returned”) is a finely detailed hymn with a deceptively light touch, led by his soulful, baritone voice and brittle acoustic guitar.

ICELAND: Rjóminn
Prinspóló – Fostudagsmessa
This is the first new song Prinspóló has released since his debut album Jukk in June 2011. Fostudagsmessa most likely does not make sense to you, since it is in Icelandic, so let Prinspóló himself explain: “The song is about the place you don’t want to be at. For example, a dark and dirty nightclub where everybody is pretending to have fun and everything is great.”

INDONESIA: Deathrockstar
Mushafear – Meats In
Even though most people in Indonesia only knew Kurt Cobain from television, magazines, CDs and the internet, there are a handful of devoted fans who still yell their angst to the establishment, family and social system. One of the best bands from the community are Mushafear, who are fronted by Mirantie Boreel, an angry young lady while on stage but a humble girl off it.

IRELAND: Nialler9
Wonder Villains – 33
The sense of exuberance and energy coming from the speakers when a Wonder Villains track is playing is almost too much. This pop punk band from Derry make music that could only come from young minds and (relative) inexperience, but that primal energy makes it so infectious. Revel in their youth. It’s a lot of fun.

ITALY: Polaroid
Drink To Me – Future Days
“Life is an experiment and that’s why it is interesting,” says the first line of Future Days, and it’s something that could fit with the music of Drink To Me as well, especially with their new album, S. Amazing percussions, a lot of spacey synths, echoes of Animal Collective and MGMT – you can never tell what’s going to happen next. “We’re wide awake and we’re working on the future days”, and judging by this song, Drink To Me appear to have a lot fun doing it. And us too!

JAPAN: Make Believe Melodies
MFP – Theme For The Movement
MFP, the recording name of Osaka’s Masaki Konagai, named his latest album Mindful Beats Vol. 2, but the music within is more than rapper bait. MFP cites the late beat-maker J Dilla as a major inspiration, and album highlight Theme For The Movement carries the same this-does-not-need-rapping-over-it quality so prevalent in the best works of Dilla. It surges with more electricity, though, making it one of the most energetic tracks from an album brimming with them.

MALTA: Stagedive Malta
MegaFun – You’re So Cool!
MegaFun is 16-year-old Daniel Abdilla. When not fronting his band Clandestines, he is churning out bedroom recordings under the MegaFun moniker. He forms part of a Maltese DIY scene which has blossomed over the past couple of years.

MEXICO: Red Bull Panamérika
Centavrvs – El Caudillo Del Sur
The Mexican Revolution started in 1910 and during the centenary festivities, a group of deviant jazz, funk and electro musicians from Guadalajara formed Centavrvs. Their cunning mixture of old “corridos” (speeches and folk songs) from the Revolution and contemporary aesthetics create a Mexi-tronica sound that departs adventurously from the roads explored by the Nortec Collective over the past decade. Viva la Revolución!

NETHERLANDS: Unfold Amsterdam
Aafke Romeijn – Stella XVII
Aafke Romeijn is no shrinking violet singer-songwriter. Having fronted the all-female folk-rock band Mister Blue Sky for six years, she recently released a pleasing debut solo album titled Stella Must Die! As a solo artist, she calls to mind Amanda Palmer, not simply because this record is based heavily on piano and accordion, but because the songs are as theatrical and lyrically conceptual as Palmer’s are renowned for. As Aafke says: “It’s a record about pretty girls, secretly making out during school lunch breaks, throwing kitchen knives and, of course, about Stella.”

PERU: SoTB
Xilófonmático – La Aventura De Los Insectos
An album doesn’t require large studios to impress and excite. Take, for example, the home project of Xilófonmático (a compound of xylophone and automatic). His first work, La Aventura De Los Insectos (Ipod EP), mixes instrumental and sung songs with playful and surreal touches. The EP is a rollercoaster of emotions, with the same ups and downs.

PORTUGAL: Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
Walter Benjamin – Airports And Broken Hearts
Walter Benjamin is the artistic name of Luis Nunes. He is a singer and songwriter from a new generation of Portuguese musicians, some of whom he has played with and/or produced (for instance, MAP alumni Noiserv, Minta, Julie & The Carjackers). His new album, The Imaginary Life Of Rosemary And Me, is out this month and we proudly present the first free download from it.

PUERTO RICO: Puerto Rico Indie
Similar – Cíclope
Similar began as a studio project between Daniel Vicente and Ariel Hernandez back in 2009. Their debut EP showcased a mean pop sensibility with striking noise textures and was well received. The duo recruited musicians to perform as a live ensemble, but with the departure of Vicente to concentrate on his solo project, Pasajero, Ariel moved to consolidate a more psychedelic and aggressive sounding band. Cíclope is the first track recorded by its most recent line-up, which includes guitarist Gaby Vidal of local metal group Ongo. It will be part of the band’s first full-length, expected later this year.

ROMANIA: Babylon Noise
Mojo Barrel – Catch The Devil
Mojo Barrel are a young band from Cluj who successfully merge rock with funk and blues. In their own words, they have the mojo – the magic, the charm, the inspiration, the creative trigger, the talent – and the barrel – the place where it all begins, blends, becomes and finally breaks through.

RUSSIA: Big Echo
Videatape – Coastal Lights
Parad Planet, the debut album of St Petersburg rock trio Videatape, combines amazingly melodic songs both in English and Russian with soft lyrics, a great vibe and beautiful sadness.

SINGAPORE: I’m Waking Up To…
Winterhalter – Squirrel Land
Don’t take the music of Winterhalter too seriously. It’s great if you can name all the references in any given song, but doing so seems counterintuitive to what’s intended by Shaun Soh, the brains behind the project. Performing sporadic shows within Singapore’s shores, Winterhalter is a sort of myth, but recordings of the music are available if you ask nicely, just like we have. So go on, have a listen. A real treat would be the four-track EP, I Am Worthy of God’s Love, released as an entire song on Soundcloud.

SOUTH AFRICA: Musical Mover & Shaker!
Saintfearless – Conventional Love Song
With their dynamic, rich sound and equally watchable stage performance, Saintfearless is making waves around the country as well as within the music industry. With a frontman to rival any other and talented musicians to back him up, Saintfearless offer fresh, catchy indie-rock songs.

SOUTH KOREA: Korean Indie
Byul.org – Pacific
For as long as they’ve been around, Byul.org have been one of the most interesting entities in Korea’s music scene. Last month the collective had their first proper album Secret Stories Heard From A Girl In An Opium Den released in the US and Europe through Burnt Toast Vinyl, putting a decade’s worth of intriguing work on display. Though Byul.org are not usually afraid to experiment, Pacific (see video) is a retro pop number on the electronic side with an invitation to both dance and dream.

SPAIN: Musikorner
Evripidis And His Tragedies – Teeth
Evripidis And His Tragedies are a familiar face in Barcelona’s indie music scene. Led by Evripidis Sabatis from Athens, Greece, they deliver carefully handcrafted pop, inspired by 60s innocence. Evripidis opens up his heart in every song, as we can tell by the sincere, melancholic and emotional lyrics that most of us will feel like our own. Teeth may be the darkest but most necessary song they have recorded, and there’s also a video for it.

SWITZERLAND: 78s
Domi Chansorn – Leaving In A Gentle Way
A tragic incident brought Domi Chansorn to his first drum kit. His dad, also a drummer, died in a car accident. Now, 15 years later, he has won the m4music Demotape Clinic – Switzerland’s most important contest for young musicians – with his first album Bright Times Can Be Dark As Well (free download), which he recorded completely on his own. His singer-songwriter-approach is genuine, playful and brisk.

TURKEY: WEARTBEAT
Farfara – Water Air
Farfara is a dream-pop trio from Istanbul and Berlin. The members say the band invented itself with a psychedelic brew of kraut drums, shoegazing guitars, airy synths, ethereal vocals, lots of Love and a clear commitment to pop. They convey a simple though profound expression. Their second album is released this month – keep an eye on their Bandcamp page and drown yourself in the dreamy waters of Farfara.

UNITED STATES: I Guess I’m Floating
Alabama Shakes – On Your Way
We often try to give you some unearthed gems every month and who knows, maybe you’re unfamiliar with Alabama Shakes? If so, we’re gonna change that ASAP by introducing you to the soulful Southern rockers and their gem On Your Way. This band blew up from obscurity last autumn, signed to ATO Records and will open for Jack White on his solo tour. It’s good to know all the new fame won’t change their sound, though.

May 9, King Tut’s, Glasgow (sold out)

VENEZUELA: Música y Más
Alfred Gómez Jr – On The Ground
Alfred Gómez Jr has changed everything with his new album Simple (name your price on Bandcamp). In his previous album, La Reina Peinándose, we could hear urban and Latin rhythms merged fairly harmoniously. This time he has incorporated elements of jazz and pop-rock that will take his music to a whole new audience.

Having only actually heard half of the contenders, it would be unfair to pass judgement on just how strong the list is without listening to every song from every selected record, an undertaking which nearly sent The Pop Cop team to an early grave when we did precisely that for the 2011 Mercury Prize.

The invaluable lessons learnt that day which can be carried forward to the SAY Award is that 1) every person will have their own opinion on the 20 albums; 2) some just happen to be more entertaining than others; 3) arguably none more so than those expressed by Amazon customers…

6th Borough Project – One Night In The Borough

Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat – Everything’s Getting Older

Bwani Junction – Fully Cocked

Chris Stout’s Brazilian Theory – Live In Concert

Conquering Animal Sound – Kammerspiel

FOUND – Factorycraft

Fudge Fingas – Now About How

Happy Particles – Under Sleeping Waves

Jonny – Jonny

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine

Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will

Mungo’s Hi Fi – Forward Ever

Muscles Of Joy – Muscles Of Joy

Remember Remember – The Quickening

Richard Craig – Inward

Rustie – Glass Swords

Steve Mason & Dennis Bovell – Ghosts Outside

Tommy Smith – Karma

Twin Atlantic – Free

We Were Promised Jetpacks – In The Pit Of The Stomach

April 16 to May 11: Stream each of the longlisted albums via the official website
May 14: Public vote (winner guaranteed slot on shortlist of 10)
May 17: Shortlist announced
June 19: Winner announced
- Click here to read The Pop Cop’s feature on the SAY Award

Bwani Junction – Two Bridges

Anti Climb Paint by FOUND

A year and a half ago, I published an article that explained why “the Mercury Prize increasingly has little relevance to the music scene in Scotland” and concluded: “It’s surely time Scotland followed the example of the various countries who organise their own version of the Mercury Prize, such as Ireland, Canada, Australia, Germany and France.”

Little did I know it was already at the very top of someone’s to-do list.

That person was Stewart Henderson, co-founder of Scotland’s most revered record label, Chemikal Underground, and board member of the Scottish Music Industry Association. (He also played bass for one of my all-time favourite bands, The Delgados, so it’s safe to say I like the guy.)

The SMIA has only been in existence since 2009, but today it scores off one of its primary objectives – the launch of a Scottish Album of the Year Award.

There are various music prizes and award-giving events in Scotland but this is the first one that the general public might actually pay much attention to. This is an important point because the country needs something that will capture the imagination of people who aren’t already emotionally invested in the Scottish music scene, something that will engage the mainstream media, spark arguments in rural pubs and get social networks a-buzzing.

The most stark evidence that the Scottish Album of the Year Award is a proposition that should be taken seriously is the amount of hard cash it has been given by Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government to get it off the ground – £85,000.

Of this, £20,000 goes to the winner (a sum equal to that of the Mercury Prize), with £1,000 to the nine runners-up. Each of the 10 shortlisted finalists also get an art prize, commissioned to the tune of £20,000 and created by a Glasgow School of Art graduate. From next year onwards, this in itself will be a competition between the graduates from Scotland’s four principal art schools – Glasgow School of Art, Edinburgh College of Art, Gray’s School of Art in Aberdeen and Dundee’s DJCAD.

The SAY Award (as it shall be known, just you wait) pays homage to albums released in the previous calendar year. For the inaugural event that means we’re going to do a lot of reminiscing back to 2011. So if you’re a Rangers supporter, or if you’ve booked a cruise on the Costa Concordia, life’s pretty sweet.

This graphic helps explain how the process is going to work in 2012:

INDUSTRY NOMINATIONS
Last month, 100 nominators were asked by the SMIA to list their favourite 5 albums of 2011 in order of preference. The nominators were drawn from across the music industry, such as retailers, journalists, radio employees, genre-specific experts, venue staff, DJs, concert promoters and, yip, even bloggers. In order to limit the most blatant conflicts of interest, certain folk – managers and record label owners for instance – were not invited to play.

LONGLIST
As the number above says, there will be a hallowed list of 20 albums, determined by those who have accrued the most points from the nominators.

PUBLIC VOTE
This is the part when those deemed classy enough to have made the longlist lose all semblance of cool by failing to stop themselves begging for votes from fans, relatives and former teachers. If you are invited to do just that via a Facebook event, click ‘Maybe’ and keep them sweating.

SHORTLIST
Whoever gets the most public votes will be guaranteed a place on the shortlist of finalists if they haven’t already been chosen by the Judging Panel. If the latter is the case, this artist will have as much chance of winning the award as I do. The shortlist is an even more hallowed (hallowed-er?) roll call of 10 albums, culled from the longlist by the Judging Panel. This special syndicate fully deserves capital letters to compensate for the fact they will get a beasting on Twitter when they inevitably pick the wrong finalists.

AWARD CEREMONY
Tuesday, June 19 – mark it in the diary now. The evening of the SAY Award (told you it would catch on) ceremony clashes with England’s wholly unanticipated defeat to Euro 2012 hosts Ukraine. The winning album will be announced at southside venue Film City Glasgow, which I never even knew existed until last night, so I’m not going to pretend I didn’t copy and paste this fact: it is a dedicated film and television production facility in what was once Govan Town Hall.

I genuinely hope the SAY Award is a success, not just because recognition on this scale for Scottish musicians is long overdue, but because Stewart Henderson has worked relentlessly behind the scenes to mould this into something that is inclusive and embracing, as the man himself explains.

Why is the SAY Award a good thing for the Scottish music scene?
Stewart: “Honestly? I think it’s better than good, I think it’s a great thing for Scotland’s music scene. There’s an unprecedented scale and scope to this award in terms of the input that’s been given from throughout the industry and I think that’s something that’s been long overdue and hugely exciting. We (the SMIA) spent 18 months developing the format for it in the hope of delivering a credible and progressive prize for music (and art) in Scotland and I’m confident the level of industry-wide consultation and engagement we undertook has given us something with real potential.

“While we obviously have to be careful not to overplay the importance of a music prize, I do think its arrival – and the financial elements of its prize fund – marks a significant milestone in the development of Scotland’s music industry. It also sends out a powerful message about just how valued and important music is within Scottish culture.”

Some people believe music/the creation of art shouldn’t be a competition – how would you respond to that?
Stewart: “It’s not a competition: it’s a celebration, an opportunity, a platform. The nature of an award is that, ultimately, there has to be a winner but it’s lazy and short-sighted to use that as a means of relegating the whole thing to the level of a beauty contest. The albums on the longlist and the shortlist aren’t competing against each other, they’re being celebrated alongside one another.

“We can offer these albums – all of which are there on merit – a platform from which they can all be championed irrespective of genre, unit sales or label affiliation. I make no apology whatsoever for the fact the SAY Award is focused on promoting these albums specifically and the music industry as a whole. We want, even if it’s for a couple of weeks or months, to build a sense of civic pride in the music this nation produces and to press home the message that, if you listen to music on your stereo, on your phone or in your car, then it’s your industry too and that you have an invaluable role to play in helping sustain it. Listen to these albums, discuss them online, go to a gig and hear them played live and, yes, seek out a record shop and buy some of them.”

Do you think the Scottish music scene gets as much exposure outside Scotland as it deserves?
Stewart: “Scotland has always had a great international reputation from a music point of view, not just for the artists and albums we produce but for our love of music as a nation. That said, I think there’s always more that we can do. Personally, I think it comes down to the manner and the tone we choose to take when marketing and promoting ourselves and our music.

“We have an extraordinarily diverse and talented range of artists, musicians and bands in this country and if we can find the means to champion that fact inclusively and eloquently then I firmly believe people outside this country will take even more notice than they are taking already. I’m growing increasingly proud of the music that comes out of Scotland and, to be honest, working on this award has elevated that sense of pride to another level entirely so hopefully this award is doing something right.”

- If you’re interested (just pretend), here are the 5 albums nominated by The Pop Cop:

Beerjacket – The White Feather Trail

LightGuides – Samba Samba Samba

Mike Nisbet – Vagrant

We – With The Stars As An Audience

We Were Promised Jetpacks – In The Pit Of The Stomach

One of the most keenly anticipated records of 2012, Admiral Fallow’s second album Tree Bursts In Snow, has leaked a full seven weeks ahead of its May 21 release date.

The normally mild-mannered Admiral Fallow member Sarah Hayes struggled to hide her shock and indignation at the unexpected revelation in a video recorded exclusively for The Pop Cop.

April 22: Cafe Continental, Gourock (tickets)
April 24: An Tobar, Tobermory  (tickets)
April 25: Old Bridge Inn, Aviemore (tickets)
April 26: Ironworks, Inverness (tickets)
April 27: The Ceilidh, Ullapool (tickets)
April 28: Woodlands Centre, Stornoway (tickets)
April 30: PJ Molloys, Dunfermline (tickets)
May 1: Tolbooth, Stirling (tickets)
May 3: Clickimin Centre, Lerwick (Shetland Folk Festival)
May 21: Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh (tickets)
May 22: Fat Sams, Dundee (tickets)
May 23: Lemon Tree, Aberdeen (tickets)
June 8: RockNess, Dores (tickets)
June 22: Solas Festival, South Lanarkshire (tickets)
July 13: Hebridean Celtic Festival, Stornoway (tickets)
December 8: Barrowland, Glasgow (tickets)

If you’re in the business of being enthralled by new music, of surrounding yourself with grassroots talent and immersing yourself whole, then I’d be surprised if you weren’t already hatching a plan to spend your Saturday, May 5 at Bogbain Farm in Inverness.

I know, I know, we’re all skint so perhaps it’s a little insensitive to emotionally guilt you into coughing up for a ticket for the inaugural Brew at the Bog, but they’ve only gone and assembled one of the most exciting homegrown bills in living memory.

It’s like a Pop Cop fantasy festival. There are half-a-dozen acts – Beerjacket, Café Disco, Endor, Mike Nisbet, The Seventeenth Century and Washington Irving – in the 32-strong line-up I’ve put in past editions of the Music Alliance Pact and gushed about extensively, plus a heap of others – Fatherson, Kitty The Lion, Over The Wall, Quickbeam, Stanley Odd, The Open Day Rotation and Three Blind Wolves to name but seven – that I’ve got plenty of time for.

If you’re still sitting on the fence then all you need is a gentle nudge, so these crafty money-saving tips might just do the trick:

1. BYPASS BOOKING FEES
Festival tickets are on sale online for £45 at Ticketsoup but the booking fee bumps up the cost by another £5.40. However, 30 readers of The Pop Cop can get tickets for just £40 (and no booking fee) by emailing yvonne@northernrootsevents.com and mentioning The Pop Cop ticket offer. That’s a saving of £10.40 per ticket. Neat, huh? I’m sure Yvonne will also be able to sort you out with fee-free camping or caravan/campervan tickets if you ask nicely.

2. BUDDY UP
There are relatively inexpensive advance return train tickets available to Inverness from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Stirling, but if you travel in a group of 3 or 4, ScotRail do a special Friends Fare for these routes. Travelling as a foursome on a return journey from Glasgow/Edinburgh/Stirling costs a total of £47, saving each individual £10.05. In addition, online train booking website Red Spotted Hanky are doing a £10 travel voucher giveaway this weekend, which could reduce the cost of return train travel to Inverness to a ludicrously cheap £9.25 per person.

3. HOP ON A BUS FOR THE FINAL LEG
It’s four miles from Inverness city centre to the festival site. The No.4 Stagecoach bus from Queensgate (just round the corner from the train station) terminates at Milton of Leys, from where Bogbain Farm is a 10-minute walk. The bus costs £1.45 each way (get the 4B back on the Sunday, see timetable/routemap). Alternatively, you can do the journey by taxi (Happy Cabs, 01463 717777) – the fare is £10.

4. BECOME PALS WITH JONATHAN POWELL
Welsh singer Jonathan Powell is the boyfriend of Charlotte Church, so he should provide good entertainment value and beer-buying generosity if he’s anything like his missus. The pair have shared the stage on more than one occasion. You never know.

FULL LINE-UP

Beerjacket
Bensh
Café Disco
Cherri Fosphate
Endor
Fatherson
Findlay Napier & The Bar Room Mountaineers
Graham Brown
He Slept On 57
Jonathan Powell
HelloVideo
Kitty The Lion
KOBI
Laki Mera
Little Fire
Lost City Soul
Matt Norris & The Moon
Megan Blyth
Midnight Glory
Mike Nisbet
Open Swimmer
Over The Wall
Quickbeam
Sion Russell Jones
Stanley Odd
The Little Kicks
The Open Day Rotation
The Seventeenth Century
Three Blind Wolves
Tommy Reilly
Washington Irving
Woody Pines

Individual train fares
Glasgow/Edinburgh/Stirling – Inverness, £21.80 return
Aberdeen – Inverness, £16.40 return
Perth – Inverness, £22.20 return

ScotRail Friends Fare for 3 or 4 people travelling together
Glasgow Queen Street – Inverness, £47 return (May 5: depart 07:06, arrive 10:28; depart 08:41, arrive 12:03*)
Edinburgh Waverley – Inverness, £47 return (May 5: depart 06:32, arrive 10:28; depart 08:34, arrive 12:03*)
Stirling – Inverness, £47 return (May 5: depart 07:33, arrive 10:28; depart 09:07, arrive 12:03*)
Aberdeen – Inverness, £36 return (May 5: depart 08:23, arrive 10:40; depart 10:14, arrive 12:25*)

*First acts are on stage at 12pm, so get earlier train to catch them or arrive the night before to be on the safe side. Camping tickets are available for £10 which cover Friday to Sunday, or you could cosy up at one of the many Inverness B&Bs (average price £25/30 per person).

Fatherson – Kiteers

Over The Wall – Thurso

Washington Irving – Phantom Buck

The beauty of this binary universe is that it has never been easier for independent-minded musicians to sell directly to their fans and maximise their income. No middle men, no profit sharing, no postage & packaging – just make your album, stick it up on Bandcamp (alright, so there’s one middle man) and reap the rewards when the download dividends come rolling in.

Or so I thought. Two people my path has crossed with quite a bit over the past year are about to explain why I’m completely wrong, or at least why letting a DIY label do some of the work isn’t just for apathetic layabouts.

Newly-formed Comets & Cartwheels is the brainchild of Paul Downie and Vicki Cole who, between them, already tick boxes marked ‘band manager’, ‘gig promoter’, ’musician’, ‘graphic designer’ and ‘web developer’. Their fledgling record label proudly boasts a roster of superlative-tinged Glasgow trio Endor, Quickbeam and PartWindPartWolf, so let’s find out what bands signed to Comets & Cartwheels can expect to get out of the arrangement.

How did Comets & Cartwheels come into being?
Vicki: “The label began as a partnership between Paul and I back in October last year when we had travelled to Dundee with Endor, who we manage, to do a show at Duke’s Corner. I vaguely remember being a bottle of wine deep, watching Richie and Jarv from the band cut some surprisingly good shapes on the dance floor at the end of the night and turned, no doubt drawling, to then designated driver Paul and it struck me that we do so much work with bands anyway that a label seemed like the next logical step. Then and there I think there was a handshake which I never thought would come to anything, but turns out it has.”

Why did you set up the label?
Paul: “The idea of having an opportunity to ensure that music you love has the very best chance of being recognised and showcased effectively really appealed to me. Having spent the last five years promoting bands through live shows, it just felt like the right time and a logical next step.”
Vicki: “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I like labels which have a very strong aesthetic (Sub Pop, Bella Union, Fence, Arts & Crafts etc) and felt it was important from the start that we have a great-looking website and really professional videos and photography of the bands we work with, and of course high quality music too. In the past I’ve always been stressed out my nut doing live shows and felt it was time for a change of tack, and doing music releases instead sounded appealing, especially in the current online climate.”

Where does the label name come from?
Paul: “We couldn’t agree on a name at first so we decided that we would pick one word each and whatever we chose would be the label name. Thankfully it didn’t sound like an English country pub and we both managed to avoid lowering the tone. Cartwheels is my favourite Reindeer Section song.”
Vicki: “I just like the word ‘comet’, it doesn’t have any great significance, though Paul says I chose it because I’m a pure space cadet.”

What do you offer bands who sign to your label?
Vicki: “It depends on what the release involves, I guess. We plan on doing album releases and EPs in the future too, but for the first single (Quickbeam’s Seven Hundred Birds), we invested a considerable amount of money in London-based PR company A Badge Of Friendship for a three-month campaign as well as hiring a BAFTA short film-nominated director (Mat Sheldon) and his crew to shoot the video on location in Cumbria. Our experience as live promoters perhaps sets us apart from a lot of labels too as we want to keep live promotion on our home turf as in-house as possible, so we can put on inventive nights like the Quickbeam single launch on the Tall Ship (a great idea that Paul came up with).”

Why do you think small independent labels are necessary for small independent bands? Could they not just do the same thing themselves and cut out the middle man?
Vicki: “They definitely could. All I’d say is that it has taken me years to build up the contacts and relationships I have in music, as well as the knowledge I’ve gained by playing in bands myself and studying commercial music at university. Ultimately any band could do what we do but sometimes I think it’s important for a band to be able to concentrate on songwriting and creative output. It’s often the case that artists don’t enjoy the admin side of the music industry. That’s not to say all bands are like that, but I’ve found that the majority of the time musicians quite enjoy working with a team around them who help manage the bigger picture.”
Paul: “They could certainly cut out the middle man if they wanted, however I think that if you are lucky to find a label that can really get behind your band, make sure everything ‘back of house’ is in order and help you achieve the goals your band is aiming to achieve then, providing there is a good working relationship, it can only have a positive effect.”

What kind of acts would you consider adding to your roster?
Vicki: “I wouldn’t rule anything out except for maybe death metal. As long as the music has some artistic merit and evokes some kind of emotion in me, I’d consider releasing it. If there are any bands out there that sound like Be Your Own Pet get in touch, cause I miss them dearly. I’d be keen to release music by an international band at some point. There are lots of grassroots Canadian bands I’d love to work with.”
Paul: “Death metal. Joking. We have a pretty eclectic taste so it will be exciting to see what we find.”

Would you encourage people to send you music or is it a case of, ‘Don’t come to us, we’ll come to you’?
Vicki: “Because we’re just starting out I love the idea of getting an inbox full of new material and the possibility of discovering something really great that we could release, so yes, we’d definitely encourage submissions through our SoundCloud DropBox.”

- Quickbeam’s debut single Seven Hundred Birds is released on April 9.
- Comets & Cartwheels’ label launch features live sets from Quickbeam, Endor and Joe Black (Washington Irving) on board Glasgow’s Tall Ship on April 13 (tickets).

I’ve always been fascinated by the concept of cause and effect, those little twists of fate that have potentially life-changing consequences.

If PAWS hadn’t played at last June’s goNORTH, they wouldn’t have been seen by Alex Knight, the label boss who subsequently signed them to FatCat.

However, Alex wouldn’t even have been in Inverness had Olaf Furniss not tipped him off after being so impressed by PAWS at his own Wide Days event in Edinburgh a couple of months earlier.

Just last week, Olaf spotted the promo video of Quickbeam’s gorgeous debut single Seven Hundred Birds on my Facebook page. Had I waited another day to post it, it would have been too late for Olaf to rip up the Wide Days 2012 programme and offer the band a showcase slot at next month’s event, which is precisely what happened.

It’s no coincidence that Wide Days and goNORTH increase the likelihood of these happy accidents happening. If you’re an artist with a desire to get your music into the hands of people who could progress your career, or if you have ambitions of working in the music industry, then turning up at either event is as smart a move as any.

For the uninitiated, both are music conferences with a mixture of daytime seminars/workshops and evening showcase gigs and they’re run by – and attract – genuinely good, passionate people.

The third annual Wide Days is at Edinburgh’s Teviot on April 11-12 (tickets). Panel discussions will cover topics such as getting gigs abroad, music innovations, online audience-building, music tourism and playing at sporting events. The one with most potential for carnage is called ‘A&R You Brave Enough?’, in which musicians are invited to submit a track for an honest appraisal from an A&R panel.

The showcase gigs on April 12 are free for anyone to attend, but ticketed:

The Third Door – Michael Cassidy, Quickbeam (tickets)
Electric Circus – Donna Maciocia, Honningbarna, Lady North (tickets)
Sneaky Pete’s – Honeyblood, Homework (tickets)

The 11th goNORTH takes place across several venues all within walking distance of each other in Inverness on June 6-7. The seminar schedule hasn’t been released yet, but artists hoping to get on the bill of one of the showcase gigs (there are at least a dozen) must apply before the April 1 deadline.

Some of the artists chosen will secure additional slots on the goNORTH Festival Tour, which includes Belladrum, Wickerman, Summer In The City, B-Fest and Loopallu. One act will also be invited to play three European festivals – Play (Belgium), Freeze (Netherlands) and SPOT (Denmark).

All goNORTH showcases, seminars and workshops are free and open to the public.

Previous posts:
- What I learned at Wide Days 2011
- GoNorth 2011 review

It’s no surprise Aloe Blacc needed a dollar – breaking even is a luxury the vast majority of artists will never enjoy. Unless there’s a wealthy, generous benefactor lurking in the background, the expenditure of being a musician (from instruments and travelling to rehearsal and studio time) will inevitably outstrip any income.

Bands in particular have to become proactive to make ends meet. When Glasgow pair Aerials Up and French Wives were asked to play this month’s Canadian Music Week in Toronto, the invitation didn’t come with free flights, visas or accommodation for a seven-piece and five-piece group. So they got creative.

The imaginative Aerials Up fundraising campaign saw them embark on a 70-mile sponsored cycle to Toronto Avenue in Livingston and auction off dinner with the band through eBay, while French Wives organised two ceilidhs to help pay for their North American jaunt, which also incorporated several gigs at SXSW in Texas.

In October 2010, I published an article titled ‘How do you make money out of music?‘ explaining how Emmy The Great was funding her second album by adopting the ‘pledge’ model, which typically involves fans being rewarded with exclusive Pledger-only updates and content such as mp3s and videos in return for paying in advance for the record, other merchandise or ‘experiences’. And in the past few months, several Scottish acts have gone down a similar route.

– Belle & Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch used a creative funding platform called Kickstarter to rake in more than $120,000 in donations for his God Help The Girl musical film in only eight weeks.

– State Broadcasters have teamed up with Indiegogo in the hope of raising $6,452 (£4,060) to make a promo video.

– PledgeMusic is being used by Roddy Hart to fund his fourth studio album and also by Katie Sutherland to finance her debut album, with both campaigns proving successful.

Not everyone is buying into it, though. In a blog post, Avalanche Records owner Kevin Buckle wrote that PledgeMusic was “not a good idea at all… A successful release needs momentum and word of mouth and what both PledgeMusic and launches do to a large extent is kill that”.

While Kevin acknowledges his is a “biased” perspective given that Avalanche, as a retailer, is potentially missing out on album sales, there’s no denying this system works like a dream for existing fans. Katie Sutherland pledgers, for example, have already got their hands on five unreleased songs.

Forres indie-pop favourites Be Like Pablo are putting their own twist on the incentive-based model. Not only are they offering subscribers to their website exclusive content every month to promote their forthcoming debut album, The New Adventure, they will then give it away for free on its August 3 release date. Commercial suicide, perhaps, but you won’t find any of their followers complaining.

Aerials Up – I Am

French Wives – Younger

State Broadcasters – Trespassers

Roddy Hart – Video Games (Lana Del Rey cover)

Katie Sutherland – Slamming Doors

Be Like Pablo – Julianne

The delicate, precious sounds of Mike Nisbet represent Scotland in this month’s Music Alliance Pact – he truly is an outstanding prospect.

The Pop Cop’s counterparts in Colombia, El Parlante Amarillo, made a neat video about this project which features an interview with our Mexican MAP blogger. Check it out here, señoras y señores:

Click the play button icon to listen to individual songs, right-click on the song title to download an mp3, or grab a zip file of the whole 38-track compilation here.

SCOTLAND: The Pop Cop
Mike Nisbet – Not Long
Originally from Oban, Mike Nisbet possesses an enchanting backstory that could give Justin Vernon a run for his money. Living a genuine nomadic existence, acoustic guitar in hand, this wandering troubadour has a Dylan-esque timeless quality to his songwriting, a voice that soothes and shatters hearts, and a gorgeous debut album, Vagrant, that could/should earn this remarkable 23-year-old talent devotees in any continent, any generation, any decade.

March 16, Roxy 171, Glasgow
March 24, The Captain’s Rest, Glasgow (tickets)
April 8, The Old Hairdressers, Glasgow
May 5, Brew At The Bog, Inverness (tickets)
June 2, Dirty Weekender, Kilmarnock

ARGENTINA: Zonaindie
Yataians – What A Man’s Got To Do
Yataians is a Buenos Aires-based band with a rocksteady sound heavily influenced by Jamaican artists from the 60s and 70s, such as The Ethiopians, The Gaylads, The Heptones and The Paragons. It’s also a product of global age, with members from France, Colombia, New Caledonia and, of course, Argentina. This song is from their first album, Ô Tulop, which came out a couple of months ago, courtesy of the independent label Estamos Felices.

AUSTRALIA: Who The Bloody Hell Are They?
Shady Lane – Dumb Hope
Dumb Hope is the gorgeous lead single of Shady Lane’s forthcoming album, Built Guilt. Once the solo guise under which Sydneysider Jordy Lane put out a diverse range of odds and ends, Shady Lane has grown into a four-piece (officially?) with more hooks, vocals and a nostalgic pop sensibility not unlike fellow New South Welshmen Belles Will Ring.

AUSTRIA: Walzerkönig
Giantree – Communicate
With past major label experience, the founding members of what is now Giantree found a new home on an indie label, but without denying that what they are doing is pop in capital letters. Their debut album We All Yell comes with synthesizers and catchy hooks. Communicate, a song about fragile beginnings, was a radio hit in Austria.

BRAZIL: Meio Desligado
DJ Cremoso – Say It Ain’t So
In the film Be Kind Rewind, Jack Black and Mos Def produce their own lo-fi version of movies, which they call “sweded” versions. What DJ Cremoso makes is like that, “bregalizing” songs – turning international hits into tecnobrega rhythms (a popular style from northern Brazil). There’s almost always the same beat and silly synths are its trademark, as we can hear in this tecnobrega of Weezer’s 90s hit Say It Ain’t So. DJ Cremoso’s identity is unknown – all he has is a profile on 4shared with his remixes.

CANADA: Quick Before It Melts
Bronx Cheerleader – Camelot
Bronx Cheerleader have been a regional treasure in and around their hometown of St. Catharines, Ontario, for years now but their new album, Real Punks Don’t Sing About Girls, deserves to be heard by a wider audience. Camelot is a deliciously dirty lo-fi anthem-in-waiting, and one of the stand-out moments on this record, of which there are many.

CHILE: Super 45
Matías Cena & Los Fictions – Raíz
Matías Cena used to be a solo artist from the folk scene in Santiago, and he made himself relatively known via an acoustic guitar and MySpace. Gradually, Ryan Adams and Conor Oberst’s influence diverted him to the ensemble format, which has developed into this six-piece that shines in a land not used to country-like rock. Raíz is a taster of Matías Cena & Los Fictions’ second album Arauco Cajún.

CHINA: Wooozy
Modern Children – Mongolia
Modern Children is a six-piece band based in Hong Kong that formed in 2006. “Colorful” is the best word to describe them. They play music in different styles, from indie-pop to post-rock. Their songs are filled with all kinds of sounds by using a wide range of instruments, from guitars and bass to rainbow bells and erhu. The band released their self-titled debut album in January.

COLOMBIA: El Parlante Amarillo
1280 Almas – Antipatriota
1280 Almas is the biggest cult band from Bogotá. More than 18 years of history, six albums and a life of independence on the underground make them local legends. Now, they present a new song called Antipatriota (“Unpatriotic”), a declaration of national nonconformity.

DENMARK: All Scandinavian
Ring Them Bells – When I Hear That Whistle Blow
A MAP exclusive, When I Hear That Whistle Blow by Ring Them Bells is only the second great taste of the quartet’s loud combination of 90s noise-rock and 60s psych-pop in circulation. The other, titled Technicolor, is also available for free at the band’s website, and both will most likely be part of Ring Them Bells’ debut album slated for release later this spring.

ENGLAND: The Guardian Music Blog
Submerse – Love You Down
Rob Orme alias Submerse is a 23-year-old DJ and producer from Runcorn, now living in Tokyo, who happens to be making some of the most heartbreakingly beautiful (dance) music anywhere on the planet. Influenced equally by 2000-era UK garage and Japanese pop (J-pop), it combines the skittering rhythms of 2-step with sad female vocals and wan melody to make J-garage. If you thought Rustie was a maximalist, try this ADHD pop. It’s like bubblegum Burial, Orme filling every second of space with infinitesimal bursts, droplets, clicks, spasms and lovelorn cries, dubstep given a sugary coating.

ESTONIA: Popop
Lack Of Eoins – Sudden Death Mode
Lack Of Eoins came together in late 2005 and recorded their first demos the following year. In 2008, they won a garage band contest in Estonia and recorded their debut album, which was mastered at Abbey Road Studios. They’re back now with the single Sudden Death Mode, which was released along with three remixes as a free download on the first day of 2012.

FINLAND: Glue
Cats On Fire – A Few Empty Waves
Many argue that Cats On Fire are the best indie-pop band in Finland at the moment. This bold statement may easily be true thanks to well-crafted pop songs with a melancholic and dreamy twist, solid lyrics and distinctive vocals. This month, Cats On Fire release their third album All Blackshirts To Me. It is their best yet. So good, in fact, that the band can afford a terrific outtake like A Few Empty Waves.

FRANCE: Yet You’re Fired
Rhum For Pauline – I Can Reach The Top
Rhum For Pauline are an indie-pop band formed in Nantes in 2009 who released their first mini-album, Miami, in 2010, and their first EP, Can Reach The Top, in January. Their upbeat songs are incredibly enjoyable, the kind you like immediately after the first listen, the kind you’ll put on repeat for days. Be sure to check out the very cool video for I Can Reach The Top, directed by The Incredible Kids.

GERMANY: Blogpartei
Juli Kapelle – Treiber
Juli Kapelle is a collective from lovely Aschaffenburg, built around mastermind Achim “AS” Sauer. They are guitar-driven, reminiscent of a laid-back and bit krauty Dire Straits. All in all, music for a sophisticated afternoon.

GREECE: Mouxlaloulouda
Playground Noise – This World
Playground Noise’s new single, Swinging Lowdown, is a delicate combination of finely arranged brooding melancholy and redemption. The two indie-pop songs infuse soaring guitars with a tense, literate sense of foreboding, adding strings and brass to strike the perfect balance between moody, underground noise and melody. They are built on restraint, tinged by poignancy and wrapped up in poetic human emotion that sticks with you long after the final note. Their sophomore album is set to be released later this year.

ICELAND: Rjóminn
1860 – For You, Forever
For You, Forever is the third single from 1860′s self-released debut album Sagan. Drawing inspiration from bands such as Fanfarlo and The Avett Brothers, the song has a modern folkish vibe to it, with small-town sentiments featuring heavily in the lyrics. The song was recently included in the short documentary Íslander by Grasshopper Films.

INDONESIA: Deathrockstar
Bromocorah – Bromocorah
Bromocorah means “repeat offender”. They’re a thrash metal recidivist and I don’t think they’ll be changing their way of life any time soon.

IRELAND: Nialler9
Young Wonder – Tumbling Backwards
Ian Ring and Rachel Koeman recently teamed up as a producer/vocal duo under the name Young Wonder. Their sound is hard to define as any one genre but is recognisable by its big beats, euphoric synth rushes, pitched vocal samples and emotive lead vocals from Koeman. Yet another excellent new Irish band to watch. A debut EP drops on April 14.

ITALY: Polaroid
Man On Wire – A Thousand Legs
The name of the band is a reference to Philippe Petit, the French acrobat who walked on a rope between the Twin Towers, but their sound is definitely Americana. Man On Wire play that kind of warm and emotional folk-rock that you can find in certain songs by Arcade Fire, Wilco or The National. Their debut album is a rope from the music to your heart. And they are walking on it.

JAPAN: Make Believe Melodies
Occult You – Psychic Feelings
Tokyo artist Occult You loves to explore new sounds, each new release from this moniker and his other alias Taquwami (Google it, totally worth it) sounding like a new artistic swerve. Psychic Feelings is one of the newest tracks from the young producer, an irresistibly funky jam recalling the synth-heavy songs created by Ford & Lopatin and the Beverly Hills Cop theme tune. This is not needless nostalgia, though, rather a great song from a promising contemporary artist.

MALTA: Stagedive Malta
The Shh – So Over
The Shh’s music emerges, in secret, from a place in between the city of Paris and the island of Malta. Their debut EP, The Burning Love, evokes surf-rock sounds with warm Summer Of Love-esque vocal melodies.

MEXICO: Red Bull Panamérika
Descartes a Kant – Convince Me
Descartes a Kant is about to release their sophomore album Il Visore Lunatique, a lovingly crafted treat of madness from this exquisite riot grrrl band. While their music speaks for itself, Descartes a Kant has brought to the surface a collection of fears and obsessions through very tight and twisted imagery filled with schizoid violent punk episodes, cabaret, electronic glimpses and a disturbing cheerleading attitude embraced in a well-accomplished match between roughness, eroticism and femininity.

NETHERLANDS: Unfold Amsterdam
Kim Janssen – Tors
Singer-songwriter Kim Janssen has had plenty of international experiences to date. He has recorded and performed around the world with The Black Atlantic (a previous MAP tip), he has followed his parents around Asia as a youngster, and even experienced English boarding school life. It’s the latter that most influences his lush and gentle new album Ancient Crime. He describes it as “a concept album that takes place in an old idyllic school, in a remote village in north-west England during the winter”. Like traditional folk, it’s a mixture of history, myth, memories, old and new verses. Along the way he’s aided by Marla Hansen’s Oriel Quartet and a 100-piece choir, resulting in ambitious, delightful arrangements.

NORWAY: Birds Sometimes Dance
The Avalanche – Throw Away The Rest
The Avalanche play noisy pop with both feet firmly planted in a classic shoegaze tradition. Catchy melodies hidden beneath endless layers of distorted guitar, driving drums and fuzz bass paired with the wonderful sound of dying synths throws the listener back and forth between waves of delicious pop and dirty noise. Their debut album will be released this autumn.

PERU: SoTB
I Am Genko – Bobblehead Sphynx
I Am Genko is a live electronica act from Lima consisting of one person and some machines. They all get along pretty well. Bobblehead Sphynx, from Awkward Teenage Years EP, is a really fun, exciting song – a succession of catchy beats that take us back to our youth or childhood.

PORTUGAL: Posso Ouvir Um Disco?
A Jigsaw – The Strangest Friend
A Jigsaw, named after a dEUS song, are from Coimbra and have already won an honorable mention in the 2009 International Songwriting Contest. The Strangest Friend is the first single from their third album, Drunken Sailors & Happy Pirates. They have received enthusiastic reviews in Les Inrockuptibles (France) and Heaven Magazine (Holland) and will gather many more fans after this month’s MAP.

ROMANIA: Babylon Noise
Lights Out! – Origin
Lights Out! are a bunch of high school kids from Cluj (the heart of Transylvania). In the past two years, since existing as a band, they have kept growing, managing to make a name for themselves among Romania’s alternative/indie bands. The start of this year found them in the studio, recording their first material – Patience EP – which is about to come out. With the smooth combination of psychedelia, dreamy guitars and indie sounds, topped with Teo’s amazing voice, Lights Out! could be one of the best musical products Romania has to offer.

RUSSIA: Big Echo
Human Tetris – Silver Tears
Moscow-based post-bunk band Human Tetris have just finished their debut LP, Happy Way In The Maze Of Rebirth, and a European tour that covered Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland and France. As cold and raw as the Russian winter, Silver Tears cuts right to the bone.

SINGAPORE: I’m Waking Up To…
Shelves – Star Alright
The much-anticipated debut album by Shelves was released this month on both vinyl and digital, resurrecting not just the choicest cuts of Britpop and college rock, but the very essence of the 90s Singapore scene. Yet the record sounds anything but dated, with its clever balance of crisp melodies and generous distortion pointing the way forward for indie rock today. That vision is epitomised in Star Alright, a song that rides above the crackle and feedback to poke fun at the studded-leather ironies of pop stardom.

SOUTH AFRICA: Musical Mover & Shaker!
Sterling EQ – Bach’s Kittens At Play
Sterling Electric Quartet, affectionately known as Sterling EQ, burst on to the scene with their genre-defying musical style and sensational live performance. What started out in 2007 exploded into a musical phenomenon that has continued to take the South African entertainment industry by storm. Bach’s Kittens At Play shows off their eclectic stylings and versatile influences. It takes you on a lovely journey. With a twist. Simply delightful.

SOUTH KOREA: Korean Indie
No Control – Time
Noise-rock band No Control started out making loud punk explosions, but have since learned the importance of harmony. Influenced by Sonic Youth and with some post-rock and shoegaze thrown into the mix, their first studio-recorded release will be out this month, but already we can savor the captivating sound of Time.

SPAIN: Musikorner
Kokoshca – La Fuerza
If there’s a band that can show off the creation of a hymn for those Spaniards who usually party like there’s no tomorrow, that band is Kokoshca. They are a three-piece from Pamplona and they have already released five records (some demos, a live album and EPs). Heirs of the biggest Spanish pop bands of the 60s but with an irreverent, garage spirit, Kokoshca have recently re-released their well-known single, La Fuerza, via Elefant Records, an indie-pop institution in Spain.

SWEDEN: Swedesplease
Fucking Werewolf Asso – Keep My Adresse To Yourself, Cause We Need Secrets
Honestly, I think I’m mainly posting this for the shock value. Both the band’s name and their odd amalgam of genres are, to say the least, unusual. Have you ever wondered what 8bit electronica and punk might sound like as a mash-up? Well, wonder no more. Here’s a new song from Fucking Werewolf Asso.

SWITZERLAND: 78s
Castling Queen’s Side – Rise And Fail
The starting point for six-piece Castling Queen’s Side was an Arcade Fire gig in Zurich in 2005. There they got to know each other and decided to form an indie band. Now, seven years later, they have their debut record Cinema ready with 11 splendid songs full of depth, melancholy and catchy crankiness.

TURKEY: WEARTBEAT
The Away Days – Dressing Room
The Away Days carries influences from Northern music sounds and actually presents an unfamiliar style for us in this terrain, which is indie-rock. What distinguishes them from other bands in Turkey may be their desire and aim to make themselves known in Europe. While The Away Days is preparing to release their first EP in a couple of months, we can also see the band perform in various festivals during the summer. Dressing Room has an exceptional unity of quality structure, lyrics and music that can’t be ignored.

UNITED STATES: I Guess I’m Floating
Hundred Waters – Me & Anodyne
There’s not really much you can say about Hundred Waters that will do justice to their brand of experimental dream-pop. You’ve really just got to hear it for yourself. Me & Anodyne is from Hundred Waters’ self-titled debut, an early album-of-the-year contender.

VENEZUELA: Música y Más
Buenaparte – Con Lucy In The Sky
Buenaparte formed in mid-2010 and released their debut album, La Caída De Lucy, in 2011. Third single Con Lucy In The Sky is a love song with lyrics inviting us to get lost with the person we desire.

The most irritating thing about Scotland being part of a United Kingdom is that it gets tarred with competitive failures that are not of its making.

For the past decade, the UK has had its pants pulled down and been spanked in front of its continental neighbours on a yearly basis in the Eurovision Song Contest, accruing fewer points than any other country which has competed as consistently.*

No performer from Scotland – a nation which has disproportionately influenced global music culture – has been invited to represent the UK in Eurovision since Scott Fitzgerald appeared in 1988, and that fact won’t change this year given that Engelbert Humperdinck will fly the Union Jack in Azerbaijan on May 26 at the age of 76.

It’s inevitable that the clamour for Scotland to submit its own entry will intensify if the 2014 referendum brings independence, but what you might not realise is that Scotland can just as legitimately go it alone in Eurovision right now.

When it comes to choosing which artist and which song is put forward to represent a country, the shots are called entirely by the broadcaster. For the UK, that’s the BBC. If STV or BBC Scotland so desired, they could apply to the European Broadcasting Union (which organises Eurovision) to put forward a separate Scottish entry.

A spokesperson for BBC Scotland told The Pop Cop: “We are unaware of any plans to change the arrangements for the Eurovision Song Contest and we are not in a position to speculate on what might or might not happen with the competition in the future.” An STV spokesperson added: “There are no plans at the moment but we would not rule anything out.”

If/when that day comes, what should Scotland look for in a potential winning candidate? A study of recent voting patterns throws up a smorgasbord of styles. But, by and large, our European neighbours overwhelmingly favour songs sung in English, so Scotland should probably avoid being represented by Gaelic-language tunes or The View.

Now, if you’re sitting there thinking that Scottish acts don’t really fit in with the Eurovision vibe, you clearly aren’t aware that this country already has its own soundalikes/lookalikes of each of the last six Eurovision winners, as the following YouTube videos prove. The similarities are uncanny, I’m sure you’ll agree:

2006: LORDI (Finland)

vs METALTECH (Scotland)

2007: MARIJA ŠERIFOVIĆ (Serbia)

vs HORSE (Scotland)

2008: DIMA BILAN (Russia)

vs DANNY SHAH (Scotland)

2009: ALEXANDER RYBAK (Norway)

vs THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY (Scotland)

2010: LENA (Germany)

vs KATIE SUTHERLAND (Scotland)

2011: ELL/NIKKI (Azerbaijan)

vs ADMIRAL FALLOW (Scotland)

_____________________________________________________

*Bosnia and Herzegovina, France, Germany, Greece, Romania, Russia, Spain and UK are the only countries to have appeared in every final since 2002. The UK’s cumulative points total (499) during that time is the lowest of these countries.

Different people have different ideas about what it entails. Some would argue that major music events like SXSW are pay to play given that artists have to fork out at least $30 to apply via Sonicbids, the same submission website used by RockNess for their unsigned stage and GoNorth. Then there’s the loathsome cash cow that is Live And Unsigned (now with added public humiliation!).

But the sort of pay-to-play events I’m going to discuss here is the one that primarily concerns local promoters booking local acts at local venues.

At a conventional gig, the promoter will pay the acts for their performance and raise the money to put on the show by charging the audience.

Under a pay-to-play system, the artist themselves must pay the promoter up front in some way to play the gig. Most commonly, this takes the form of the compulsory purchase of non-returnable tickets, which the artist needs to sell in order to recoup their outlay.

One company who uses such a method is Whats The Noise Promotions, who put on gigs at various venues in Glasgow including ABC2, Stereo, The Captain’s Rest, Pivo Pivo, 13th Note, Chambre 69, Maggie Mays and Flat 0/1. An unsigned band forwarded a WTNP contract to The Pop Cop that shows they would be charged £50 if they sold 10 tickets or less, with revenue from sales above that number split with the promoter.

A gig should be a partnership between the artists on the bill and the promoter, with both sharing responsibility for its success. But with the arrangement used by WTNP and many others like them, only one party faces financial risk. A four-band bill under the terms above guarantees £200 for the promoter even if the venue is empty.

Nobody is forcing musicians to take these pay-to-play deals but promoters get away with it because those they target often think they have few, if any, other options. For example, they might be a beginner band who haven’t built up a fanbase outwith family and friends, they might not have good contacts or they might be based in an area with only one small venue. Another demographic regularly approached by pay-to-play promoters is under-age bands, who find it virtually impossible to get shows in licensed premises.

When DF Concerts book a local act to play at, say, King Tut’s, they usually use a ticket deal which splits the revenue two ways. However, unlike pay-to-play promoters, DF never set a minimum amount that an act must give them before they can go on stage, so there is no repercussions for musicians when it comes to ticket sales, at least not financially.

“When a band is offered a gig they have to look at the offer and see if it works for them,” says Craig Johnston, assistant booker at DF Concerts. “If they don’t think they will sell any tickets then they shouldn’t take a ticket deal. I have had bands come to Tut’s and bring five people, so when they ask for another show I’ll be totally straight with them and tell them to go and play some of the good smaller venues in town like Bloc to build a fanbase then come back to Tut’s when they’re ready to play a bigger venue.”

Should an act ever agree to play without getting paid?
“Look at each offer individually,” says Craig. “If they think they will get enough PR etc out of it, it might be a good idea. But when I was a band manager I would never let one of my acts play for free.”

Singer-songwriter Vivien Scotson has organised a protest against the exploitation of musicians at Glasgow’s George Square on April 28 29 at 1pm. She says her campaign is as much about educating musicians as it is about persuading self-serving promoters to change their ways.

“It’s a rather big picture and not just aimed at getting promoters to stop putting on pay to play,” explains Vivien. “By spreading the awareness, it is educating others to steer clear of these pay-to-play gigs. A lot of musicians already know pay to play is wrong, but because certain promoters have a hold on so many venues, and block book them, they feel they have no alternative. And often if they stand up to it, and suggest it’s not a fair deal, they will be told they are not getting any more gigs with that promoter and sometimes even threatened. The sad thing is, the scene has been totally polluted by it.

“There is so much involved in all this. I am gathering lots of information regarding places for musicians under the age of 18 to play. I am also against venues expecting musicians to play free of charge, and offering nothing in return. Yes, it does all come down to choice, but the side that is acting immorally is the side that is booking these musicians in the first place.”

The pay-to-play promoter’s argument for employing the methods they do is that the commercial success of a gig relies on how many paying customers can be attracted. If they are booking grassroots acts who aren’t established, there are no guarantees that costs will be covered. The promoter will have their own outlay such as hiring the venue and staff, supplying backline equipment and printing posters, and they feel they have just as much right to earn money for their efforts as the musician.

The question, though, is whether that right extends to charging the performer for a low turnout. A musician’s first job is to play music, a promoter’s first job is to promote. If not enough tickets have been sold for the show to break even then it’s patently obvious which of these two parties haven’t done their homework properly – and it isn’t the ones up on stage.