Scots Whay Hae!

Gordon's Alive!: It's The Glasgow Film Festival...

2012-01-28T18:24:00.000Z

One of the best festivals of the year is Glasgow's annual Film Festival and this year's line up is a brammer and a belter. There is far too much stuff to recommend for me to deal with here so for the full line-up go to Glasgow Film Festival and spend hours trying to decide what you simply must see, and then what your back ups are. To help you in that search here are six of the best on offer.

As usual the festival is split into different strands, 19 to be exact, including Frightfest, Kapow@GFT, the Short Film Festival, the Youth Film Festival, the Music & Film Festival, and a Gene Kelly retrospective. They also cover Scottish, British, European and World cinema so there really is lots and lots to see, and do.

The first pick couldn't be more up Scots Whay Hae's street. It is Murray Grigor and legendary photographer, director and cinematographer David Peat's documentary following Billy Connolly; Big Banana Feet. The footage is from his 1975 tour of Ireland and it is an incredibly intimate portrait of the comedian just before he went stratospheric. It's on at 18.15 in the GFT on Sunday the 26th February. Here's a short clip:

Staying with Scottish legends there is a showing of Bill Douglas's student film Come Dancing followed by a discussion panel which includes Alex Norton, director Ian Seller and Peter Jewell. Those of you who know his work, which includes the Bill Douglas Trilogy and Comrades, will need no telling from me how exciting this is, but if you don't I urge you to attend to discover why he is considered by many to be Scotland's greatest film-maker. It's on at the CCA on the 12th February at 3pm. Here's a short clip from My Childhood, part of his autobiographical trilogy, as a tempter:

Next up is something a wee bit special. It's Bernard Tavernier's La Mort en Direct, otherwise known as Death Watch, and it is legend. It was filmed in the late 1970s in Glasgow and stars Harvey Keitel as Roddy, a reporter who agrees to have a camera implanted in his head so he can catch the final days of Katherine (played by Romy Schneider) who is dying from a terminal disease, a rarity in this dystopian future. There are echoes of 1984, but it clearly foresees the more recent obsession with a Big Brother society. All this and Max Von Sydow and Harry Dean Stanton to boot. The following clip shows clearly why they chose to set the film in Glasgow:

Death Watch is on at the GFT on Sunday the 26th Feb at 3pm.

They are showing a selection of films by ex-The Jesus and Mary Chain guitarist Douglas Hart at the CCA on Saturday the 11th of February at 9pm. As well as his football documentary about Brazil 1970, which has music by Primal Scream, they are including some of his music videos, of which there are plenty to choose from. He has worked with My Bloody Valentine, Paul Weller, The Pet Shop Boys, The Libertines, The Horrors and many more. He also did this for the aforementioned Screamers. This is Burning Wheel:

So far, so serious, but I do love a good screwball comedy, and I have high hopes for Sheree Folkson's The Decoy Bride which stars two of Scotland's most pleasing screen actors David Tennant and Kelly Macdonald. It seems to be doffing its cap to Powell and Pressburger's legendary I Know Where I'm Going, set as it is on the tiny fictional Scottish island of Hegg. If they pull this off this could be the hit of the festival. Then again... Here's the trailer:

The Decoy Bride is on at the Renfrew St Cineworld on Tuesday the 21st and Wednesday the 22nd of February, 8.30pm & 12.30pm respectively.

These are just a few suggestions. There's also Hal Ashby's Harold and Maude, Irvine Welsh's Ecstasy, Richard Jobson's latest The Somnambulists, a showing of The Maggie at The Tall Ship, a documentary about The Silver Apples, All Divided Selves which is a film about the controversial Glaswegian psychiatrist R.D Laing, and Flash Gordon for all you Queen/Brian Blessed/Peter Duncan fans. That really is just scratching the surface. I'm going to leave you with the great Gene Kelly, one of cinema's true greats. You can also see Brigadoon, Hello Dolly, Anchors Aweigh and An American in Paris but on Saturday the 18th of February Singing in the Rain is on at 1.30pm in the GFT and I for one will see you there. To paraphrase a certain Mr Wallace, cinema doesn't get much better than this:

Doo,dedoodo, dooda, doo, dedoo, doo, dedoode...

Your Bard: It's The First Scots Whay Hae! Burnscast...

2012-01-25T09:39:00.000Z

Welcome to the 12th Scots Whay Hae! podcast which is also our first 'Burnscast'. In discussing and debating all things Robert Burns related we wanted to try and separate the man from the many myths that accompany him, and also concentrate on the poetry and songs themselves. To do this Ali is joined by our resident literary expert Ronnie Young who puts Burns into context of time and place, and helps explode a few of the myths that surround the man Henry Mackenzie called the 'heaven taught ploughman'. The two also talk about how their initial impressions of Rabbie were shaped and distorted by what they saw on TV, and the image problem that Burns Suppers in particular still have.

This is a point taken up by Cameron Goodall, one of the country's foremost Burns performers, and a man who is steeped in the poetry and song. He phones in to share his thoughts on the idolatry of Burns which makes for fascinating listening, and his passionate plea for the poet to be appreciated for more than the 'greatest hits' is a convincing one. Cammy has recently finished building the website for the Robert Burns World Federation and it is one of the best online sites for all your Burns' information, particularly useful as an educational resource.

To back up the claim that Burns' words are more important than his life, there is poetry and song to enjoy. Ali reads the full 'To A Louse' which Ronnie and he discuss in depth, and matters are rounded off by Jennifer Scammell who sings a wonderful version of one of his best songs; 'Green Grow the Rashes, O'.

As you get ready for your own Burns Night celebrations we hope this will help you get in the right frame of mind, and to think beyond the haggis, neeps, tatties and drams to explore all the great poetry that Robert Burns has to offer. As well as food, drink, beasties and an eye for the lassies there is politics, sex, social commentary, anti-establishment rhetoric and much more. From 'Twa Dogs' to Holy Willie's everywhere, all tastes are catered for. If you want to read, or listen, to all Burns poems and songs, or just reacquaint yourself with your favourites, then the BBC's Robert Burns Website has everything you need and need to know, including how to have the perfect Burns Supper, and The Scottish Poetry Library will have lots of Burns' related information and highlights throughout the day and night.

You can listen and subscribe to the Scots Whay Hae! podcast on iTunes or by RSS. To help you further embrace the Bard here is a terrific animation by Chris Ellingford based on the story of 'Tam O' Shanter', recently voted Scotland's favourite Burns' poem:

Have a grand old evening whatever you do. The next podcast will be with you in a fortnight, and we're keeping the details secret at the moment, mainly as we haven't decided what we're doing as yet. Whatever it is no doubt it'll be worth a listen.

What The Butler Saw: Neil Butler's The Roost...

2012-01-24T16:05:00.003Z

In last year's podcast with Alan Bissett he recommended two young writers who he thought had great futures ahead of them. The first was Allan Wilson, whose collection of short stories Wasted in Love was one of Scots Whay Hae's books of the year. The other was Neil Butler whose debut The Roost was also published in 2011 and if I had got round to reading it sooner it would have joined Wasted in Love on that list. If you can't be bothered reading this whole review, and I know your time is precious, then I'll give you the short version here; The Roost is one of the most enjoyable, exciting and energising books I have read in some time, and as with Wilson I'm already excited to see what Neil Butler does next.

It is a collection of connected short stories with the same group of characters, in a similar manner to Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. Named after a tidal surge off the coast of Shetland, the stories are about a group of teenagers experimenting with sex, drink, drugs and fashion as they try to work out what is important in their lives. Butler beautifully captures what it's like to be that uncertain age, coming to terms with all your hopes, fears and dreams while trying to work out what it means to 'grow up', without realising that so few of us ever do. Although this is a book about teenagers it is distinctly not a book only for teenagers. Imagine Skins written by Brett Easton Ellis and set on Shetland and you have some idea of what to expect, and if you think that sounds like a terrible thing then you're wrong and I have failed you.

The central character is Ellie Tait, the popular, cool and attractive girl whose every whim and wish are pandered to by her 'friends' and admirers, often without them knowing why. The cruelty that Ellie hands out to friend and foe alike is breathtaking in its ferocity but Butler makes it clear that this comes from Ellie's own insecurities and unhappiness. From the time we see her from afar playing football with the boys to the beyond poignant ending we, like Ellie, are made aware that she has this power to effect others without completely understanding why. This is teenage life as William Golding saw it, always in danger of losing any pretence of social expectations and returning to a state of nature. It is a visceral picture and you can almost smell the pheromones and Lynx.

Ellie appears to be top dog as she hides her personal demons more successfully than her peers, but is proved to be just as confused and vulnerable. She sees everything as a game, and as such everyone else as an opponent to be used before they use her. Everyone wants to be her or be near her and she abuses this power as she can't quite believe that it's true. If you don't like yourself then it's difficult to believe that any one else will. Her relationship with Stacey and Helena, who want nothing more than to be her friends, more through fear rather than affection, is heartbreaking for all three.

Written mainly in English with the odd piece of dialect to denote the older generation of Shetlanders, Butler captures how teenagers talk to each other, often using language that they think is 'adult', something which doesn't sit easily in their mouths. The fierce desire to grow up as quickly as possible, and for some to leave as quickly as possible, is on every page. This is never more in evidence than in the battle of the sexes, a battle which these kids are spectacularly unprepared for. The language is sparse and simple which is perfect for the characters, particularly when they are expressing the casual cruelty that results from personal insecurities. These are not whip smart kids with all the answers, just constant questions. The main one being 'who am I?'

As Kevin McNeil did with The Stornoway Way, Butler dispels any lingering belief that the Scottish Highlands and Islands are an untouched Tartan idyll from another time. This is as modern as Scottish storytelling gets. These lives are filled with worries which are exasperated by modern technology. The fear that a private photo will be passed around the playground, or trying to understand the hidden meaning behind the semiotics of texts, means that they are never able to be at ease, worrying that there is someone talking about them, or, even worse, not talking about them.

The Roost has been compared to Alan Warner's The Sopranos, but I think Butler captures the language and interaction even more convincingly. The Sopranos in Warner's book were all too cool for school, and I was more aware of the gender of the writer than I was when reading The Roost. There is none of the voyeurism that Warner sometimes reverts to in his novel, and there is an honesty and understanding on show here that is at the heart of Butler's novel's success. Despite some of the subject matter and actions of his characters there is always a warmth and genuine concern for these teenagers. Even if it's been decades since you left the school gates for the last time The Roost will remind you that schooldays could be confusing and terrifying, despite what your memory may tell you.

The last twelve months in Scottish writing has warmed my soul as it has seen great novels from established writers such as A.L Kennedy, Alan Bissett, Ali Smith, Kevin MacNeil and John Burnside (who also won the T.S Eliot Prize for his collection of poetry Black Cat Bone). There were fascinating memoirs from Janice Galloway and Kapka Kassabova, a canonical collection of poetry with These Islands, We Sing, and new poetry from Jackie Kay and Carol Ann Duffy as well as the appointment of Liz Lochhead as the nation's Makar. When you add to all of this some of the fantastic new voices I have read or heard, of which the aforementioned Allan Wilson and Neil Butler are two of the best, then it seems clear to me that just as we are in interesting and influential times socially and politically so we are culturally, the one reflecting the other. As it should be. Feel free to disagree, but I would suggest that if you do then your not looking in the right places.

You Have Been Watching...The Purifiers

2012-01-19T11:51:00.000Z

The previous 'You Have Been Watching' looked at the Jet Li and Morgan Freeman oddity Danny the Dog and it reminded me that I had a DVD that promised to be even stranger which had been sitting on my shelf for some time. Its name is The Purifiers and like Danny the Dog it is a slice of martial arts madness filmed in Glasgow in 2004, but that's where the comparison ends. The budgets, cast, and everything else money related, are miles apart. One brings a Hollywood sheen to Glasgow, the other has the feel of late night shoots in the nooks and crannies of the city. Having said that both films are written and directed by recognised mavericks. Danny the Dog had Luc Besson and the man responsible for The Purifiers is Fife renaissance man Richard Jobson.

I've written before of my admiration for Jobson because he is not afraid to take risks and try something different. The Purifiers is not his finest work, that would be 16 Years of Alcohol (although A Woman in Winter is his most interesting, and visually stunning, film despite having flaws). He is a man who has managed to get the films he wants to make made, a miracle on a par with the loaves and fishes.

There are a lot of cliches on show, but this is a genre movie and it is one which is different enough to make it stand out in a crowded market. The fighting, on the whole, is balletic in its execution if far from convincing, and there are nods to great films such as A Clockwork Orange (a recurring theme in Jobson films), The Warriors, The Matrix and lesser texts such as Judge Dredd and even Roadhouse. Jobson uses some trusted faces such as Kevin McKidd, Stuart Sinclair Blythe and Lewis McLeod all of whom also appear in 16 Years of Alcohol, but the headline billing is shared with McKidd by Lost hobbit Dominic Monoghan, which tells you a lot, and martial artist and stunt man Gordon Alexander who is the star of this particular show. Apart from being the only lead who you believe could give you a kicking, he has a charismatic presence that shows up the other performances as being one dimensional. His climatic showdown with Kevin McKidd's villainous Moses is laughable as it is obvious that McKidd was only there for about 10% of the time.

McKidd is perhaps the films biggest let down. His is a performance of moustache twirling excess as he spouts sub Nietzschean aphorisms and glowers and glares with such a rapid change of focus it's as if he is watching a tennis match in his head. He is much better than this, and has been so before for Jobson, playing an onscreen version of the director in 16 Years of Alcohol. It is an instructive piece of acting as it highlights Jobson's glaring fault. He is not good at directing actors. All of his films look and sound great, but they all contain some terrible performances, too many to make it a coincidence.

Here's the trailer to give you a flavour:

The 1990s and early 2000s saw a run of crime and gangster related films filmed in Scotland. These include The Big Man, Strictly Sinatra, American Cousins, Small Faces, The Near Room and The Life of Stuff. The Purifiers could be placed in this tradition but is really only for martial arts fans and Jobson completists, and although I quite enjoyed it I know that many people will hate it. In fact a quick look at the comments in the IMDB confirm this, but there is again enough evidence of the director's ingenuity and visual flair for it to appeal. Jobson's latest film, the anti-war The Somnambulists, is part of this year's Glasgow Film Festival (a preview of which will be with you soon) and I for one look forward to seeing it. The man knows his cinema inside out, and knows how to make a film look great even on the tightest of budgets. The Purifiers is his weakest film, but we should be glad that he's out there making movies as his failures are more exciting than many people's relative successes.

You Exhibitionist: The Best of Glasgow's Galleries...

2012-01-17T13:42:00.000Z

It's that time of year where every penny seems to count, and when there are still gigs to try and get to, films to see and books to buy then having a cheap day out is always a bonus. Well, here is Scots Whay Hae's suggestion for a day of culture round the streets of Glasgow that won't break the bank. It takes in three exhibitions which, as long as you don't mind a walk, will cost you the grand total of two quid, £1.50 for concessions. How, what, why and when for this fiscal miracle? The place to start is the Street Level Gallery at Trongate 103 on Argyle St.

For this is the place to find a terrific exhibition of the photography of Harry Papadopoulous, the man who chronicled the Sound of Young Scotland before going on to become one of the most influential rock photographers of the 1980s. The photographs on show range from ABC to Zeke Manyika with nearly every significant band in between. There are some terrific shots of Marvin Gaye, David Bowie, The Specials, Bryan Ferry, Madness, Iggy Pop, Patti Smith and many, many more.

But of real interest to me is his early work which captures a time when Scotland was producing some of the most lasting and influential music around. The myth that there was only Postcard Records in the early 80s is busted on the gallery walls where there are some evocative pictures of musical legends such as Davie Henderson, Stephen Pastel, Alan McGhee and even Peter Capaldi when he was the lead singer of The Dreamboys (which featured one Craig Ferguson on drums). For anyone who is interested in Scottish music this is essential social/cultural history.

When people talk about the music of the early 1980s it tends to revolve around the boys from Postcard such as Orange Juice, Aztec Camera, Josef K and those in near orbit such as The Scars, The Fire Engines, The Bluebells, The Armoury Show and The Associates. The women often get overlooked so here are two of the great female fronted pop bands of the time. First off are Rose McDowell and Jill Bryson who made up Strawberry Switchblade, one of the best band names ever. This is Since Yesterday:

Altered Images were seen by some as too twee for school, but they wrote some of the best pop songs of the day, which considering the competition is really saying something, and in Claire Grogan they had a near perfect front of stage. Strike that, she was perfect. While I head off for a wee lie down here they are with one of their later songs Don't Talk To Me About Love:

Next up was a trip to the Gallery of Modern Art where they have an exhibition of Alasdair Gray's original work depicting various Glasgow scenes and characters from the late 1970s, as well as prints of the covers for the original four books that make up Lanark.

The Glasgow pictures are from the time when Gray was employed as the 'artist recorder' for the city. There are paintings, sketches and collages of Bridgeton, Tollcross and Arcadia Street, the inside of famous Glasgow institutions of the day including the BBC newsroom and Sweeney Todd's hairdressers, and some of the more famous denizens of the city; Edwin Morgan, Alexander Hamilton, Archie Hind and the infamous Pastor Jack Glass (left).

Finally, after a brisk walk through town, the AC/DC exhibition is still on at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery. This is where you'll have to dig into your pocket, but if you're a fan of the band (am I right to think that's most people?) then it is money well spent and more. Lots of rare memorabilia and personal items, particularly from their early days, lend a fascinating behind the scenes look at this most unassuming of bands as they moved from bar rooms to stadiums. It's a testimony to them that they can make songs that were originally played to a room full of larrikins reach the back seats at Hampden Park as they did last time they were on tour. For full evidence of this there is lots of amazing live footage; from early days on Aussie TV shows, excerpts from their legendary 1978 Glasgow Apollo gig (where they are resplendent in full Scottish footie kit), to the large screen showing highlights from recent tours. For that alone I would have paid my £2.

Here they are in the salad days of the legendary Bon Scott playing Let There Be Rock at the aforementioned Apollo. Let's rock:

Mark My Words: It's The 11th Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2012-01-13T16:09:00.001Z

The first podcast of 2012 sees Ali talking to Mark Buckland, the high heid yin of Cargo Publishing. It's over an hour of friendly and informative banter, the mood only briefly taking a turn for the worse when Ali threatens to pump Mark for information, which for some reason sees him bolt for the door. In that time they talk all things Cargo, the past, present and future of publishing, and Mark takes us through this year's Margins Book and Music Festival which promises to be one of the year's cultural highlights.

I won't give too much away here as it's all on the pod. Suffice to say that if you like what we cover in Scots Whay Hae! then Margins will definitely be for you as it includes many who we have written about, interviewed, and spoken to, over the years. Tickets for Margins are out now so to peruse the line-up and decide what you fancy go to Margins Book & Music Festival 2012. There are certain events which are bound to sell out quickly so get in while you can.

But there is much more than mere promotion to tempt you. Have a listen to find out what links Tarkovsky, Tool and The Third Man, gasp as you discover that child labour was alive and well in the early days of the 21st Century, ponder if Mark really lived in Paris or just dreamt he was Toulouse Lautrec after a night on the absinthe, and consider what childhood trauma could explain Mark's aversion to Tweed and those who sport it. All this and a tribute to James 'the hardest working man in showbuisness' Brown from Mark 'the hardest working man in publishing' Buckland. That's entertainment.

You can subscribe and listen to the Scots Whay Hae! podcast at iTunes or on RSS. All feedback is gratefully received and any suggestions for future recordings considered.

The next podcast is going to be our first 'Burnscast' where special guests will chat about The Bard and all that attends his legend. We'll raise a glass and, hopefully, have some readings. All being well this will be with you on Burns Night (Wed 25th Jan) so wherever you are you can celebrate the words and life of Rabbie B.

You Know When You've Been Tango'd: Kapka Kassabova's Twelve Minutes of Love...

2012-01-12T19:08:00.000Z

And now for something a little different. Kapka Kassabova is a Bulgarian born poet, travel writer and novelist who has traversed the globe before settling, for the moment, in Edinburgh. I first read her fiction in The Year of Open Doors, where her short story The Hostel in Junction Street is one of the highlights, and then discovered her beautiful poem 'You Are Never Consoled' in the second edition of Gutter Magazine. More recently she featured in one of this year's Christmas presents; The Atheist's Guide to Christmas.

Her latest book is Twelve Minutes of Love: A Tango Story and it is ostensibly a personal memoir setting out how a love affair with tango not only changed her life but perhaps saved it, as she travels across continents to pursue her passion and to embrace new partners and old. If you want a copy then you may find it, as I did, in the dance section of your local bookstore. I suppose it is about dance, but Twelve Minutes of Love is so much more.

It is as much about the human condition; all life, love, death and tango is here. Like the dance itself the book is philosophical, psychological, physical, lyrical, spiritual and gives up something new every time you return. In the prelude there is the claim that tango '...sums up, more concisely than any epic poem or philosophical tract, the mystery of passionate love'. You may be initially sceptical about this, but by the end you are left in no doubt that, at least for the writer and those she partners, this is true. We are introduced to a deeply unhappy Kassabova in New Zealand where she appears to be having an existential crisis and as such is ripe to be effected by her initial tango experience in the near empty bar where she witnesses an older couple dance. From that moment she, and we, are hooked.

The book is beautifully written, but it is the searing honesty that is the most striking aspect of Twelve Minutes of Love. I've no idea if names have been changed to protect the innocent, and the guilty, and who really cares, but Kassabova manages to see faults on both sides when a relationship, whether dance, personal or both, fails. She is as hard and harsh on her own faults as on anyone else, perhaps more so. This honesty can make for uncomfortable reading at times, as if you are intruding on personal grief, but this never becomes self pitying. Rather there is a melancholy which underpins the book just as it does tango itself. There is a quote from a 1940's song which claims: 'Tango smells of life, Tango tastes of death', and both life and death come in many guises. The end of every dance is its own 'petit mort'. The knowledge that love, and life, must die underpins not only tango, but arguably all art.

Kassabova poses fascinating questions about the nature of obsession. Are we likely to become obsessed when every thing is going well in our lives? It seems unlikely. Consider your own obsession, whatever that may be, and ask yourself what it gives you, or what need it fills. A recurring refrain throughout the book is that tango is not about sex, to the extent that you have to ask if the lady doth protest too much, and the lady is completely aware of this. Sex, or at least sexuality, runs through Twelve Minutes of Love like a suggestive sentence through a stick of rock. As soon as someone says 'this is not about sex' then they have you thinking about it. This made me question why any one becomes 'obsessed' in this manner. Is any obsession as selfish as it may appear? If you believe Freud (and the tango is a Freudian's dream) that everything we do or say is about sex, then at least those who dance the tango are more up front about it than most.

I'm never going to be able to fully convey the complexities of the tango, and of the book, in this review. Hopefully you'll be interested enough to find out for yourself, but by placing the dance in a social/political and near global context Kassabova has managed to make it relevant and recognisable to everyone who has ever obsessed. So that's everyone with a soul. The end of the book sees the writer in Edinburgh still dancing, but more content than 10 years previously. Perhaps what Twelve Minutes of Love teaches us is that in the end we want someone who, if they do not share our obsessions, at least understands them. We all dance some form of tango. The only thing to do is decide who you dance for and who you dance with.

This is a quite beautiful animation by artist Em Cooper which was created as a response to Twelve Minutes of Love, and I'm told that the female dancer is Laura Julia De Altube, an Argentinian tango dancer. That's just for those of you who care about such things:

Naked Radio: The Healthy State of Scotland On Air...

2012-01-08T21:04:00.000Z

A wise man once said 'You ought to go and do as you are told, you ought to listen to the radio', and as usual I do as I'm told. As someone who spent most of his 'working' days over the last few years at a desk, the radio is just about my best friend (no offence). I could do without all other technical wizardry, but my relationship with the radio is a lifelong affair.

So ingrained is it that I realise I have perhaps taken it for granted, never having written about it on these pages, which considering the amount of hours spent listening seems a waste. This struck me as I listened to The Quest of Donal Q, this week's episode of Radio 4's Saturday Play (which you can catch here on the iplayer for the next six days). It was written specifically for Brian Cox and Billy Connolly by David Ashton and is loosely based on Cervantes' Don Quixote. Also featuring Sandy McDade and Forbes Masson it is a terrifically entertaining hour in the company of two of Scotland's favourite sons, and is a great example of what the BBC continues to do better than anyone else.

This got me thinking about what I've been listening to over the last few years, and there's been some great programmes, particularly if you're interested in the sort of stuff dealt with on Scots Whay Hae! You have your selection of Scottish Cafes; Movie, Culture, Book and Comedy, on weekday afternoons on Radio Scotland, and there are too many dramas written and performed by Scots or with a Scottish context to mention here, and that's before you consider music (where radio continues to be an important place to hear new sounds and bands despite what others may tell you), sport and documentaries. Just today I was listening to Radio 4 and heard the first episode of Welsh's Scottish Journey where writer, and friend of Scots Whay Hae!, Louise Welsh follows Orcadian poet Edwin Muir's 'Scottish Journey' of 1934. You just won't get this anywhere else. If you've travelled abroad with a tranny you'll know how true this is (insert gag here).

I do want to draw your attention to two of my personal favourite radio shows of recent times, both of which first appeared on Radio 4. Another Brian Cox vehicle, adapted from Neil Forsyth's excellent books, were The Bob Servant Emails which were only 15 minutes long but which proved to be some of the funniest radio for years. Cox is perfectly cast as Servant, a man who answers those emails the rest of us delete. Here's an example of what's on offer:

But my favourite Scottish radio comedy of the last few years is Fags, Mags & Bags which is set in a Lenzie local convenience store and which stars Sanjeev Kohli and Donald McLeary, also the writers, as best friends Ramesh and Dave who manage matters in shop. There is a regular cast which includes Julia Wilson Nimmo and Omar Raza, but there have also been interesting guest stars such as Kevin Eldon, Greg McHugh and Sylvester McCoy. It also had legend Gerard Kelly as the inappropriate Father Henderson in one of his final roles. In half an hour it always manages to be amusing, poignant and has a warmth which is something that radio requires more than TV or film. It is a much more intimate experience, and one which rejects overly harsh tones or violent changes. To put it another way; 'It is both amazing, and great'. Here is Ramesh and Dave to show you around Fags, Mags & Bags:

The end of last night was spent watching BBC Alba which had the foresight and good taste to show the BBC's 1974 production of John McGrath's The Sheep, the Stag and the Black, Black Oil. If you want to see just how fondly it is thought of then you should go over to Reel Scotland to garner the strength of feeling from those who also stayed up to watch, but it was a timely reminder of what BBC TV rarely does these days; namely produce thoughtful social/political drama (think also Edge of Darkness and Jute City). Things on the airwaves are healthier, if admittedly rarely hard hitting, but on stations such as Radio Scotland, Radio 4 and now Radio 4+, it seems comedy and drama can remain insightful, entertaining and relevant. It appears The Buggles were mistaken, video couldn't see radio off after all.

You Have Been Watching...Danny the Dog (aka Unleashed)

2012-01-03T22:34:00.000Z

A few years ago, when I was working in a Glasgow restaurant, someone informed the kitchen that the mighty Morgan Freeman was in for dinner. Of course we all sneaked a look, but what was more fascinating to me was one of the other men at his table. His name was Jet Li. For any fan of martial art cinema this was like seeing De Niro, but the question remained; what the hell were Freeman and Li doing together in Glasgow? The answer was Danny the Dog.

Danny the Dog, known in the US as Unleashed, was a French/US/British co-production which was shot in Glasgow in 2004. As well as Freeman and Li it also stars Bob Hoskins in full The Long Good Friday mode. It was directed by Louis Leterrier (Transporters 1&2, The Incredible Hulk) and written by the legendary Luc Besson (Subway, The Big Blue, Leon, The Fifth Element). Quite a pedigree, and although it has its faults, this is a film that deserves to be reassessed.

Jet Li is Danny who has been taken by the man who murdered his mother, gang boss Bart (Hoskins doing what he does better than almost anyone else), and trained as a fighting machine; literally raised like a dog. He becomes the muscle behind Bart's debt collecting and protection rackets. Controlled by a collar which inhibits any retaliation, Danny behaves as an unthinking automaton, apparently all humanity lost. Even as he metes out his punishment there is always the sense that Danny cannot be blamed as he has no free will, or so it appears, and is compelled to act out Bart's wishes. In this the film is similar to earlier Besson scripts La Femme Nikita and Leon where charismatic but damaged trained killers have been left with little choice to act differently. The script may be Besson but the style is pure Leterrier as the action is reminiscent of that found in his Transporter films; fast cut, high octane, martial arts. However there is much more to Danny the Dog than pure chop-socky.

Things take a different turn after Danny and Bart are involved in an ambush and Danny escapes and is taken in by Sam (Freeman), a blind piano tuner, and his step-daughter Victoria (Kerry Condon) who has come to Glasgow to study music. Here Danny finds a less violent security, one where he is taught to appreciate music (he becomes Sam's assistant) and is shown compassion, kindness and love for the first time since his mother's death. It is in these scenes where Li really comes into his own, struggling to shake off his life long and brutal conditioning and accept to trust his new 'family'. It could be argued that Sam and Victoria are simply reconditioning Danny with their own set of values, yet it has to be accepted that these are less likely to result in violent death. In the end Danny will make his own choice.

Here's the trailer:

The soundtrack is one of the most memorable things about the film. It is Massive Attack at their best and the album, also called Danny the Dog, is one I recommend even if you never intend to watch the film. This is one of the quieter moments called Two Rocks and a Cup of Water:

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Danny the Dog is the lightness of touch in the way it uses Glasgow as its setting. For those who know the city and its landmarks there is never an attempt to hide the location, but neither does it pander to the usual stereotypes and cliche. Having the none more Cockney Hoskins as an underworld figure feels perfectly natural, as does the multi-cultural family of Freeman, Condon and Li. This is because no big deal is ever made of it, and for once Glasgow, and by extension Scotland, is accepted as a multi-cultural society where people from all over the world choose, or are sometimes compelled, to make their homes. It would be nice to think that what Danny the Dog started will continue with film makers both at home and abroad following its lead. Ahem.

The Bells! The Bells!...Scots Whay Hae's Hogmanay Treat 2011

2011-12-31T14:22:00.000Z

As Mr Scott once more raises his bottle to the promise of a New Year and a celebration of the old here's a couple of songs that just missed out on being in the Scots Whay Hae's Greatest Scottish album...ever. First off are the mighty Rezillos with Destination Venus and one of the best openings to any song:

Next up is the song which was the most painful ommision from the list. This is The Associates and Party Fears Two, and tonight I'll be going out dressed like Alan Rankine; head to toe in white, including gloves, with chopsticks in my hair (if only):

Finally, an admission that I completeley forgot to include James Yorkston, something which highlights just how pointless such lists are. This is one of his very best and it's called When The Haar Rolls In:

Happy New Year everybody! X

Some End of Year Monkey Buisness: The 10th Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-12-29T22:03:00.000Z

You wait for one podcast, and then two etc... Following swiftly on the heels of podcast number 9 logically comes number 10. There was the promise of special guests but bad weather and illness meant that it was down to Ali and Chris, with the help of Ian, to talk about their best stuff of 2011. Over the period of an hour and seventeen minutes there is talk about the best in film, DVD, literature, non-fiction, music, theatre, and even a game recommendation, a first for us, thanks to the controversial missive received from the sick bed of Ronnie Young.

Although no drink had been taken, at least not initially, there are a few gaffs and inadvertent guffaws to spot. There's a little bit of disagreement, and quite a lot of indignant rage, but at all times things are well mannered if a little potty mouthed. If you fancy listening to yet another end of year 'best of 2011' list (and I won't blame you if you don't) then you can do so by listening to the Scots Whay Hae! podcast on iTunes or on RSS. This podcast is supposed to be an alternative to the usual end of year lists, but if you like those (and I certainly do) then you'll find one or two elsewhere on these pages. If you agree or disagree with any of it we'd love to know.

Which other podcasts would reference William Faulkner, Denis Law, Malcom McDowell, Frank McAvennie, The Mighty Thor, King Crimson, Liz Lochhead and Brian Eno? Not many, but maybe there's a reason for that. To find out if it all makes sense in the end you'll have to risk a listen. In the meantime, and as a bit of a taster, here's a song from one of the albums under discussion. From King Creosote and Jon Hopkins' album Diamond Mine this is Your Own Spell:

Hope you've enjoyed Scots Whay Hae! in 2011. We promise you more of the same, as well as something a little different, for 2012.

A Festive Message: It's The Year in Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-12-24T17:42:00.002Z

The 9th podcast is out now and is a wee Festive special that looks back over the year in Scots Whay Hae! Picking a highlight from every month Ali yammers on for half an hour and attempts to remember what order the months fall in, while the mysterious and enigmatic Ian G breaks his vow of silence and chips in.

You can listen to the Scots Whay Hae! podcast on iTunes or on RSS. The best of 2011 podcast, where Ian, Ali and Chris will be joined by familiar faces to talk about their favourite stuff from the last year, is going to be recorded after Christmas and should be with you before the New Year. But, if you need to have a break from the family, or don't fancy the Queen, then podcast no 9 should do the trick. Have fabulous festivities wherever you are. To help you on the way here's a Winter classic. This is Aztec Camera and Walk Out To Winter:

Now Hear This: It's The Top Five Songs of the Year...

2011-12-22T21:00:00.000Z

This is the second of the Scots Whay Hae! annual end of year roundups and is simply my favourite songs of the year which may have passed you by. It doesn't include tracks from the better known acts who released material, or any of the folk who will feature in the best albums of the year list, so there is no Moffat, Creosote or others you may expect to appear. If you're havering for an album countdown right now then this years BAMS are out for you to argue over at Peenko's place. There will be a top 5 albums of 2011 here soon, but that's for another day.

Most of this list comes from those nice folk who have sent music to Scots Whay Hae! over the last year, and I thank everyone who did. If you didn't get a mention then it would be because I didn't have time to do so, or it just wasn't my cup of tea, but everything gets a listen. I would say that the following are in no particular order, but there is one song which I fell in love with over all others. Mummy Short Arms won wide acclaim for the single Chance, but nothing bettered their summer release Cigarette Smuggling which remains my song of the year. Have a listen:

There were a couple of bands who sadly split this year deserving of a mention in dispatches. One was Come On Gang who left us with the fabulous album Strike a Match to remember them by. Then there was the mighty YAK (aka You Already Know) who played one of my favourite gigs of the year at The Cathouse and released the album Petrol Money, then, like that, they were gone. From Petrol Money this is Let's Fuck and it is a heavenly slice of noise:

I said this wasn't about albums, but it is Christmas so here is one of my tracks of the year with the rest of the album thrown in with it. Dalyrimple Goes Wrong is Daniel Parry and he recorded these songs over 5 days, which is almost unbelievable. The album, which pushed many of my musical buttons, is called For Shut Eyes and if I had to chose a favourite track it would be It Stinks in Here Like Fetid Brains, but it is when you listen to the album as a whole that it makes the most sense. It's one long favourite track, and if you think that's cheating then, as Pitt the Younger once said, 'poo to you with knobs on':

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;One of my favourite new discoveries this year was Arran Arctic who released his latest album In My Hands in Spring. I was delighted to find that there was a significant back catalogue to explore. This track is the beautiful Interrupt Me, and if you listen to it on You Tube there is a huge clue as to why this appeals. On the right of the page are over ten recommendations for Mark Kozelek songs. Kozelek is one of my favourite singer/songwriters of all time, but Arran Arctic is my latest flame and deserves such comparisons. This is ruddy gorgeous:iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/aRNL4UAt1tE" width="600"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;

One of my favourite new discoveries this year was Arran Arctic who released his latest album In My Hands in Spring. I was delighted to find that there was a significant back catalogue to explore. This track is the beautiful Interrupt Me, and if you listen to it on You Tube there is a huge clue as to why this appeals. On the right of the page are over ten recommendations for Mark Kozelek songs. Kozelek is one of my favourite singer/songwriters of all time, but Arran Arctic is my latest flame and deserves such comparisons. This is ruddy gorgeous:

The final choice is from a band who featured in November's round up so it may be fresh in your mind, but I make no apologies for including it here. It's a track which sums up a year when rhythm in guitar music made a strong comeback to blow the cobwebs away. This is By The Fire by Blank Canvas:

That's it for a bumper year. Those just bubbling under were The Seventeenth Century, Honey, Silent Forest, Prince Edward Island, The Darien Venture, Miniature Dinosaurs, Randolph's Leap and many more. Can't wait to hear how 2012 will progress, it's got a lot to live up to.

Booker Prize: The Top Five Books of the Year...

2011-12-18T22:30:00.000Z

It's that time of year where people obsessed with lists get to share. First up are the Scots Whay Hae! books of the year. There are two great novels, a debut collection of short stories, an autobiography that is so much more and a collection of poetry. Something for everyone.

First off is The Blue Book by A.L. Kennedy which continued a run of incredible writing following on from her previous novels Paradise and Day. You can read the full review of The Blue Book here but the digested assessment follows:

'The novel is a love story, but what unfolds is a tale which is an unconventional exegesis on human nature and which attempts to answer 1980's electro-pop pixie Howard Jones' question; 'what is love anyway?'. As usual Kennedy manages to walk a fine line between scepticism and hope, an act which is difficult to pull off without appearing non committal, especially when dealing with something as abstract as love, but by giving no easy answers she ultimately lets the reader decide for themselves'.

Next is Allan Wilson's Wasted in Love. Every now and then someone comes along and makes everyone sit up and take notice. This year there was Mummy Short Arms in music, more of which to come, and then there was new writer Allan Wilson. I first encountered his work in one of last year's best books, The Year of Open Doors, where his story 'The End' stood its own amongst more famous names. You can read my full review of Wasted in Love here but if you don't have the time this gives you the gist:

'Wasted in Love is all about the writing. There are glimpses into lives and relationships which are dissected with a surgeon's precision. Wilson understands people; their hopes, dreams, insecurities and fears. He knows what makes people tick, and what makes them fall apart and touches upon the good, bad and ugly sides to human nature confronting all three with great honesty. There is often a tenderness to be found in difficult circumstances, the belief that love, either given or received, holds the possibility for salvation. Unfortunately, for some, that love is wasted'.

If you want to hear Allan talking about life as a writer and much more he was interviewed on the 4th Scots Whay Hae! podcast.

Kevin MacNeil featured in this list last year with his novel The Method Actor's Guide to Jekyll and Hyde, but this year sees him appear as editor rather than writer. These Islands, We Sing is a superb anthology of the best poetry from the Scottish islands. If you love poetry of any kind then you should have this handsome volume of your shelves. If you still know people who claim that Scottish literature is nothing more than English literature in an accent or in dialect then this is the book from the last 12 months that proves how misguided that view is. There was a full review back in August but here's a potted version:

'Kevin MacNeil states his belief that 'Scotland's island literature is ever evolving'. On this evidence, and when you consider the recent novels from the likes of Karin Altenberg, Robert Alan Jamieson, Richard Neath and not least MacNeil himself, this seems evidently true. I would suggest that this is yet further proof that Scottish literature is similarly in a state of evolution, and this celebration of the poetry from one of Scotland's most misunderstood and under-represented cultures adds further fuel to that apparently unstoppable fire'.

Ali Smith's There but for the was accused by some of being too close in style and content to her previous novel The Accidental. I can understand this as there is another mysterious stranger who changes the people's lives he comes into contact with, but if you couldn't get past this to enjoy and immerse yourself in the great characters and beautiful use of language which are Smith's trademarks then I think the problem may not lie with the writer. There are passages which are painfully poignant and which stay with you long after the final page is turned. There but for the does not repeat themes from The Accidental, but rather works as an accompanying text highlighting how Smith brings magic onto the page and into our lives. Here's a taste of the initial review:

'Smith loves language, and plays with it with more style and ease than any other writer I can think off. But Smith's mastery of language is only half the story, she has a wonderful ability to create characters who stay with you after the last page has turned, and often manages to do so within only a few paragraphs. Like Brooke (a young female character in the novel) she is in thrall to the power of words, and also shares the youngster's love of puns, similes and allusion all of which can give the illusion that the story which unfolds is surreal, but that's because once more Ali Smith has managed to tell a story with more beauty, wit and understated skill than we are used to and have any right to expect'.

I'm going to cheat a little bit now as Alasdair Gray's A Life in Pictures was actually published at the end of last year; but since it won The Saltire Prize this year, after some toing and froing, I think I'm justified in including it. It is one of the most important books of recent years in that it shows and tells the life and influences of one of Scotland's greatest writers and artists, and now you can pick it up for less than £20. You can read the full review here but here's an extract:

'If A Life in Pictures tells us one thing it's that the great artists are not famous for 15 minutes, theirs is a lifetime project. This is a book that shows and tells, and more than any book of recent times reminds us that art and life are inseparable. You could have had the words without the pictures, or vice versa, but both lift the other to mean more than they would have otherwise'.

You can buy all of these books at the Scots Whay Hae! Bookshop or from all good bookstores, wherever you may find them. Coming soon will be the top five songs of the year.

You Have Been Watching...The Inheritance

2011-12-14T15:21:00.000Z

There's little I enjoy more than discovering a film which had passed me by. I remember rumours of a road movie with a tiny budget being filmed around 2006/7 but thought little about it. However, recently I got a copy of The Inheritance on DVD and realised this was that film. I was really excited as I sat down to watch it. What followed was one of the oddest experiences I have had in front of a screen.

The Inheritance is a tale of David and Fraser, two estranged brothers, played by Tim Barrow and Fraser Sivewright, who are reunited at the funeral of their father and who go on the road to Skye with the promise of collecting their inheritance. On the way they pick up hitchhiker Tara, played by Imogen Toner, and the film, and the brothers, continue towards the fairly predictable end. It is how the film is constructed rather than in the plot that the real drama lies.

It is a film of lovely highs and terrible lows. Directed by Charles Henri Belleville, who obviously knows how to use a camera, the look of the film is always interesting, and at times moving. The burning of a drawing in an open fire, the use of landscape and the claustrophobic tension in the camper van are all great examples to filmmakers as to how to create atmosphere simply. The soundtrack is quite beautiful, reminding me of children's TV classic The Box of Delights (which still gets dug out every Christmas to watch with my brother). It is the perfect accompaniment to Belleville's visuals.

The problems are in the acting and dialogue. When they are as bad as this then you are left with a film with major flaws. The banter between the two brothers is obviously supposed to be strained, but is so bad that it almost becomes surreal, bearing little relation to what the other is saying as if someone had skipped a page in the script. Some of the dialogue is aiming to be postmodern in the manner of early Tarantino, with a chat about macaroni pies the most glaring example, but it never really engages and just appears forced and stilted. The appearance of Tara is the first real dramatic diversion, but although she is obviously supposed to come between the two, there is no tangible relationship to break up.

Fraser Sivewright and Imogen Toner struggle manfully with the dialogue, but Tim Barrow, who is also the writer so has no excuse, gives a performance so nuts that it ruins any chance the film has of success. It is no more than the script deserves, but his random shouting, weird interjections and constant baiting of his brother all add up to his being the most annoying on screen character since Rosie Perez in White Men Can't Jump. David is someone who likes his drugs and drink, but the overacting is something which Nicolas Cage at his most excessive would blanch at. By the end, when matters are supposed to be reaching a dramatic conclusion, I was trying to think what Barrow's performance reminded me of. It was the the BBC documentary following Tourettes sufferer John Davidson entitled John's Not Mad. David, and Barrower, have no such excuse.

Here's the trailer:

The real surprise in The Inheritance is the brief appearance of Tom Hardy as the brothers' father, and he is the best thing by a mile. Shot in black and white and close up Hardy manages to steal the film in a matter of minutes. He has gone on to be one of the most charismatic screen presences around, with his performance in Bronson particularly astonishing, but he has also been standout as Bill Sikes in 2007's TV version of Oliver Twist, as Heathcliffe in Wuthering Heights and as Eames in Inception. He is going to be Bane in the final instalment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy The Dark Night Rises, a role which could place him in the pantheon of screen icons. You can experience his appeal in this interview he gave about the making of The Inheritance:

I'm always loathe to overly criticise any film that gets made on such a small budget (reportedly around £5000, which is the most amazing thing about it) and as I say there are redeeming features, but it would be remiss of me to pretend that The Inheritance isn't tragically flawed. On the cover of the DVD there is a quote which claims the film is Little Miss Sunshine meets The Blue Brothers. I sympathise with that reviewer who obviously struggled to come up with a relevant comparison, but it is not in any way like either of those films, except that it features two brothers in a camper van. However, there is the premise for, and the promise of, an interesting film here. It touches on the themes of the classic Greek tragedies, but by the end not only do you not care about the brothers, you're kind of glad that it ends as it does.

When weighing up the pluses and minuses I come to the conclusion that this would have a made a really interesting silent movie. The scenes that work are when the two travel in silence and the music and visuals come together to create real atmosphere, and there would have been tension in discovering just where the road was taking the brothers and the audience. Unfortunately as what is going to happen is explained to us in the manner of talking to children, and in A VERY LOUD VOICE, any possibility of dramatic tension is destroyed. It is the missed opportunity that is the real tragedy of The Inheritance.

Joining the Dots: The Celtic Connections Preview...

2011-12-07T22:33:00.001Z

Next year's Celtic Connections starts on the 19th January, but as usual I like to give a heads up as to some of the highlights so that you can hopefully get your hands on some tickets before they disappear. This is probably the biggest festival that Glasgow hosts, and it just seems to get bigger year on year.

There are nights celebrating the life and work of Gerry Rafferty and Woody Guthrie, the appearance of true musical legends such as Jack Bruce, The Average White Band, Janis Ian, the great June Tabor and, stop the press, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas. Add to that bands as diverse as The Punch Brothers, Admiral Fallow, The Unthanks, Cornershop, Airdrie legends The Big Dish, The Singing Land and then consider the famous Transatlantic Sessions and there is little doubt that, as usual, you could blow the money set aside for such trifles as food and heat with ease. These are just a few of the people I would want to, and hopefully will, see.

First is one of my musical heroes. I love everything Will Oldham does, and Sunday the 29th January sees Bonnie Prince Billy at the Old Fruitmarket. From the latest album Wolfroy Goes to Town this is Quail and Dumplings:

Next is a bit of 1990s nostalgia (is that a thing) in the form of Colin MacIntyre and his Mull Historical Society. He made two of my favourite albums of the early 90s, and although he has been on the go since these are the two that I still play today. He is going to be at the ABC on the 3rd February supported by the excellent Washington Irving. From 2001's Loss, this is Watching Xanadu:

How much did I like Stereolab? A lot is the correct answer, and Laetitia Sadier is going to be at Platform on the 21st January, ably supported by Jo Mango. From last year's The Trip this is Ceci Est Le Couer and is Sadier effortlessly making beautiful music:

Here's another musical crush. Laura Veirs was one of last year's highlights and I don't see any reason why this year will be any different. She'll be at The Arches on the 3rd February, making it difficult choice for who to see that night. From 2010's album July Flame this is I Can See Your Tracks:

Another act playing The Arches (2nd Feb) is Johnathon Wilson who is the current darling of the beardy music mags, but that's no reason to dismiss him (I'm a beardy music lover myself). If your expecting no nonsense Americana then you are in for a surprise and a treat. As an example this is Desert Raven and it's ace:

I'm going to end with one of those legends I mentioned at the top. It's freezing outside and been blowing a storm, so here is the ultimate in aural warmth from Martha and the Vandellas who are going to be at The Arches on the 29th January, a show which should be sensational. Of course this is Heatwave:

Something to look forward to in the New Year, and remember to let me know if you have any spares.

You Have Been Watching...The Rocket Post.

2011-12-07T19:03:00.000Z

The Rocket Post is a film which harks back to earlier, more innocent, days of Whisky Galore!, The Maggie, I Know Where I'm Going and The Edge of the World. All of these films are well loved and continue to find new audiences. So why did The Rocket Post, released in 2004, pass by almost unnoticed? When you take into consideration a cast which includes Patrick Malahide, Shauna MacDonald, Kevin McKidd, Ulrich Thompson, Clive Russell, John Wood and Eddie Marsen, a man who is making a claim to be one of the best actors at work today, it becomes even more of a mystery.

Admittedly the story is slight, but then so are many of those classics mentioned above. Set on the Isle of Scarp just before the outbreak of The Second World War, although filmed on Taransay, it is set in a time and place which has rarely been dealt with in recent years as Scotland's darker side has dominated cinema screens. Perhaps audiences were put off by this relative unfamiliarity and the unfashionable tone, but there are enough quirky and unusual aspects to The Rocket Post to make it of interest.

As far as the cast is concerned, they too are a mixed bag. Gary Shaw is the best thing on show, revelling inthis role as Jimmy (but of course) the gallus Glaswegian welder turned poacher who gives his lines agusto which they barely deserve. Another strong turn comes from Eddie Marsan. Ifyou know Marsan from Mike Leigh’s Happy Go Lucky, or from this year’s Tyrannosaur(the most visceral experience of my cinema going year) then it is easy toforget his range. Here he plays Heinz Dombrowsky, our hero Gerhard Zucker's assistant, who feels his loyalties to his employee and those to his home country shift as it becomes clear that war is inevitable. Shauna Macdonald, who was equally good in a far more demanding role in Irvine Welsh's Wedding Belles, is perfect as the feisty and headstrong Catriona,but there is little doubt that the rest of the cast are poorly served,particularly Kevin McKidd who is Catriona's childhood sweetheart and whose stoicacceptance of her change of heart never convinces.

The problem is that everyone is a stereotype which we have seen done better before. Shaw, Macdonald and Marsen manage to make their characters more than one-dimensional, but everyone else struggles. Malahide's Machiavellian government spook is underused and John Wood's Sir Wilson Ramsay pales alongside Basil Radford's Captain Wagett from Whisky Galore! on whom he is obviously based. The leading man Ulrich Thompson sums up the films central problem. Like the film, he doesn't know what he is supposed to be. He is not sure if he is in a war movie or a love story. The film is similarly schizophrenic. It starts out as a political thriller, then swiftly moves towards the slightly awkward love story, before a breathless, and moving, finale that is more The Great Escape than Whisky Galore! Considering what has gone before, the hard hitting ending isa surprise. This directorial confusion makes a little more sense when you discover that the film started shooting in 2001, yet wasn't finished and released until 2004 with some scenes added on at a later date. Overall there is the feeling of a missed opportunity, but it's no where near the worse film featured on these pages (step forward The Match and Burke and Hare). If this was on TV on a lazy afternoon with the rain battering the window then it would life my spirits, and sometimes that's enough. Here's the trailer:

Perhaps the most striking aspect of The Rocket Post is thatit is based closely on the true story of the real Gerhard Zucker, a German rockateer who was billeted on Scarpa to build a rocket post, and was still building rockets in the 1970s. The story of the Island of Taransayis also worth reflecting on. The last inhabitants left the island in 1974 and it is now the largest uninhabited island off the West Coast of Scotland. These real life dramas should have made for a more engaging film. Maybe, one day, they will.

An Interview with Louise Welsh...It's The 8th Scots Whay Hae! podcast

2011-12-05T19:51:00.000Z

As if you didn't suspect it already, this week proved that there are few better ways to spend a morning than talking to novelist Louise Welsh. We gabbed about her writing, other writers, the importance of childhood reading, silent movies, the enduring love for Asterix and a lot more besides. You can hear the chat now as it is time for the eighth Scots Whay Hae! podcast, the slender excuse for our meeting.

I'm sure you are well aware of Louise's fiction, she is one of the best and most engaging writers at work today, but if you have not yet dipped a toe into the delightfully murky waters of Welsh then I hope this will encourage you to have a go. I would suggest The Cutting Room as the best place to start, but we discuss all her novels so you can make your own mind up as to which you think would suit you best. If you like your writing pitch black and gothic then she has to be on your shelves.

You can listen and subscribe to the podcast at Scots Whay Hae! at iTunes or Scots Whay Hae! by RSS and if you want to get in touch about anything Scots Whay Hae! you can email us at scotswhayhae@gmail.com

The next podcast is likely to be the end of year round up where regular contributors Chris, Kirsty and Ronnie will join Ali to to talk about there own particular highs and lows of 2011. There may even be a special guest!

In the meantime, here is Ali's review of The Cutting Room which first appeared in May of 2010 over at Dear Scotland :
*
Indelible Ink : The Cutting Room

At last year’s Edinburgh Book Festival (2009) James Kelman complained that genre fiction was being packaged and promoted to the detriment of ‘literary’ fiction, such as, by coincidence, his own. His argument was that we don’t properly celebrate and engage with the country’s ‘difficult’ literature preferring the comfort of genre. He is reported to have claimed that if Scotland had an equivalent of the Nobel Prize for literature we would give it to a writer of ‘detective fiction or else some kind of child writer’, by which I assume he means a writer of children’s fiction rather than the writing of a child.

Of course Kelman knew that his outburst would receive publicity, and the real target of his rage was the booksellers and they way they choose to promote fiction. It was not necessarily directed at the writers themselves, although it did hint at an artistic snobbery that is not like the man. I know that he was just shouting his corner, but such accusations suggest that genre fiction is not of literary worth. This is clearly not true as any reader of Conan Doyle, Poe, Chandler or Bradbury would acknowledge. Louise Welsh’s fiction, which at first inspection may appear to belong to the ‘thriller’ genre, gives the reader so much more.

‘The Cutting Room’ is a stunning debut novel. It is noir in every sense of the word. It is worth quoting critic George Tuttle here who explains noir with the following description; ‘the protagonist is usually not a detective, but instead either a victim, a suspect, or a perpetrator. He is someone tied directly to the crime, not an outsider called to solve or fix the situation. Other common characteristics are the emphasis on sexual relationships and the use of sex to advance the plot and the self-destructive qualities of the lead characters.’ All of these apply to ‘The Cutting Room’.

Welsh’s novel is dark, dirty, dangerous and erotic with a gothic sensibility that excites and unsettles. Welsh manages to create real tension throughout, and in the central character of Rilke, Welsh has created one of Scottish literature’s most memorable men. Here is an intellectual, lonely man who finds brief solace in drink and casual sexual encounters, a man whose strong sense of right and wrong draw him into places he would rather avoid, but where he is ultimately comfortable. There are echoes of Mr Hyde, or even James Hogg’s Robert Wringham, in his character as he lives a life that exists mainly in the dark, and is drawn to the seedy and dangerous. What makes him different from those characters is that Rilke is perfectly aware of the life he leads. There is no room for self denial in his life.

The sex scenes are graphic, although I don’t think gratuitous, and are self referential as to some they will be seen as pornographic, and questions about society’s relationship to sex, and particularly sexual imagery, are central to the novel. The apparent dichotomy about being attracted to, but disgusted by, the sexual, and the nature of taboo, are important themes which are to the fore in ‘The Cutting Room’. Rilke’s homosexuality is not used as a twist, but it is vital to the novel and allows further comment on the hypocrisy involved in how sex is viewed by the majority of society. Welsh reminds us that one person’s titillation will be another’s filth.

Louise Welsh uses the discovery of pornography at a dead man’s house as the catalyst to the mystery of the novel and this lends it a feel of deceit and deception right from the beginning. The reader is made aware that this novel will expose double lives and dark secrets. I don’t want to go into the plot here, it is a thriller after all, but I should mention just how well Louise Welsh writes. For a novel that could have been riddled with cliché she manages to appeal to those who understand the noir/gothic genres, while also allowing more literary references. Like Rilke, Welsh feels at home in the darker corners of her fictional world, but there is also the sense that there is much more going on in that world. This sense is confirmed in her second and third novels ‘Tamburlaine Must Die’ and ‘The Bullet Trick’. Make no mistake; this is clever, poetic writing that manages to be tough and lyrical at the same time.

Glasgow is very much part of ‘The Cutting Room’, and Welsh takes us from the leafy West End which most people who know the city will be familiar with, to the darker corners of Glasgow that most would avoid. Welsh has that underrated ability to make her settings so real that the reader can visualise, if not the exact location, then one very like it. Welsh takes us on a tour of the city, naming the streets, parks and buildings as she does so. If you wanted to, and I doubt most people would, you could literally follow in Rilke’s footsteps.

Scotland’s ageing cities are the perfect locations for darker drama, and they have been put to good use in fictions such as Denise Mina’s ‘Garnethill’, Alan Grant’s comic book series ‘The Bogie Man’, David Kane’s Dundonian TV thriller ‘Jute City’, John Byrne’s ‘Your Cheatin’ Heart’, Michael Caton Jones’ TV adaptation of Frederick Lindsay’s ‘Brond’ and numerous detective fiction from William McIllvaney’s ‘Laidlaw’ through ‘Rebus’ and even including ‘Taggart’. If James Kelman really believes that genre fiction is taking the food from his mouth then he is fighting a losing battle.

Louise Welsh’s latest novel ‘Naming the Bones’ has just been published and should be in a bookshop near you. Again she writes a male narrative voice with the bookworm Murray Watson the central character. I’m fascinated by writers whose best work comes when writing from a different gender perspective than their own, and in awe of them as when it goes wrong it can do so spectacularly. All of Welsh’s novels feature a male narrator, and every one of them is a convincing character. It’s interesting that Alan Warner, whose best work includes the previously featured ‘Morvern Callar’ as well as ‘These Demented Lands’ and the female ensemble ‘The Sopranos’, is returning to the characters in the latter book for his new novel. But that is for another day.

Alistair

Just Say No: The November Musical Roundup...

2011-11-29T12:04:00.000Z

Aye, the nights are fair drawing in, but some of the best music of the year has appeared in the last month to make things better. Lots of new stuff from the electronica of The Machine Room to the acoustic oddity of Bottle of Evil and the heads down rock of Underground. There's some dark discordance from She's Hit, a fantastic new album from Pumajaw and one of the albums of the year, indeed of the last few years, from one of my musical heroes; I'm talking about Mike Scott whose new Waterboys' album adapts the poetry of W.B Yeats and which really keeps me warm at night.

First up is a contender for track of the year from Blank Canvas, which has chiming guitars, driving drums and a lead singer who has more than a hint of Richard Jobson about him. Whether it makes my top five or not you can find out next month when all sorts of best of 2011 lists will appear, but so you can make up your own mind this is By The Fire:

The Machine Room remind me a little of early Simple Minds. Before you turn away, this is definitely a good thing (think I Travel, Love Song, Someone, Somewhere, In Summertime etc). This is the track Camino de Soda, and it builds beautifully to a glorious finish which makes you want to go straight back to the beginning to start the journey again:

Camino de Soda - The Machine Room by PauseRecord

Now for something dark and mellow. Bottle of Evil hail from Lanarkshire, as many great people do, and this is the most interesting take on the current vogue for the music known as folk that I have heard for some time. I would imagine that they like their rock 'post' and occasionally gaze at their shoes, a position I often adopt myself. They certainly make great music while doing so. From the EP Inside LookingOut, this is The Boatman:

Bottle of Evil - The Boatman by E.H.Studios

It's hard to beat a great bit of noise, and that's just what Underclass have produced with their latest single Beat Your Fist. What also helps is that it does what classic rock songs should do; hook you in, drag you along, then dump you after barely two and a half minutes. You barely have time to consider what just hit you. Enjoy:

Underclass - Beat Your Fist by Soundandvisionpr

Often people recommend or send things which are refreshingly different to what else is out there. That's the case with She's Hit. First time I listened I thought that this could fall apart at anytime, but they hold things together to make a lovely sound. There are influences such as The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Velvets and Nico and The Birthday Party, where I presume they get their name. This is Part One:

Out this month is DemonMeowMeow the new album from Pumajaw. Since coming into contact with their music only recently I've been catching up, not only through listening to the album, but also through watching the often brilliant videos which you can find here pumajaw/video. Pumajaw understand completely who they are, what they want to do and how they want to do it; their sound, look, and attitude. I suggest you take a listen and see if you agree with me that they are one of the most interesting bands around. This is Outlands, which in my alternative universe is the theme to a James Bond film:

Mike Scott is one of my favourite people, and not simply for his music. The first three Waterboys albums changed not only my perception of what music could sound like, but also what it could deal with. It really was 'The Big Music'. Never a man to make the prudent or obvious choices (another reason to love him) he has reformed some Waterboys to make an album which takes WB Yeats poetry, treats it with absolute reverence, and once more makes magic. This is their version of Mad as the Mist and Snow, and if this does nothing for you then I don't think you and I can be friends anymore:

As mentioned above next month will be about 2011 round ups, including a Christmas podcast which will be an end of the year review, so if you have any suggestions of songs or bands you think I have overlooked please let me know.

You Have Been Watching...Silent Scream

2011-11-22T18:41:00.000Z

David Hayman has been a central figure in Scottish cinema over the last 40 years as an actor and director. Perhaps best known these days as DSCI Michael Walker in ITV's Trial and Retribution he has appeared in classic, and often cult, films such as Walker, Venus Peter, My Name is Joe and The Last Great Wilderness. For auld punks he will be remembered as Malcolm McLaren in Sid and Nancy, but his most iconic role was as Jimmy Boyle in 1979's A Sense of Freedom, one of the most brutal and raw films ever made in Scotland, with Hayman mesmeric in the central role.

He may be rightly lauded as an actor, but he is underrated as a director with at least three interesting films under his belt. These are The Hawk, a pitch black thriller starring Helen Mirren, The Near Room (see You Have Been Watching...The Near Room) and 1990's Silent Scream which saw Hayman revisiting Glasgow's Barlinnie Prison Special Unit, which once housed Jimmy Boyle, to tell the story of Larry Winters.

Considering this is a film the majority of which is set in a Glasgow prison, the mood and tone is unexpected. There is a magical realism that reminds me in parts of Terry Gilliam's Brazil and more recently Lynne Ramsay's films; or even, with the use of illustrations which become animations, Alan Parker's film version of Pink Floyd's The Wall. This surrealism is down to two key directorial decisions. The script is based not only on the life of Larry Winters, but also his writing and the accompanying nightmarish sketches which tell a tale of someone who suffered from psychotic episodes, and who relied on drugs, both prescription and non, to deal with life.

Then there is the structure of the film, which has Winters reliving his life as he trips on pills smuggled into the prison. This turns out to be a long night of the soul and he is visited by the spectre of the Soho barman he murdered in 1963, an old lover (dressed at times as Alice), and a white horse which may or may not belong to William of Orange. These understandable hallucinations allow Hayman's direction to go into the realms of fantasy, and although the film was made in the 1990s, it captures the 1970s in fine detail, but particularly in attitude. Even in prison this is a time of experimentation, never more so than in the Special Unit, and Hayman clearly knows that of which he directs.

Iain Glen plays Larry Winters and it is a performance that is in turns subtle and startling. Recently Christian Bale was praised for emaciating himself for his role in The Machinist. Glen beats him to it, horrifically skeletal as he lies naked in his solitary cell. Glen is another underrated performer, and here he is perfectly cast as the troubled Winters; at times dangerous, at others innocent and childlike, often confused and dazed as he tries to come to terms with how life looks through his eyes. It is quite believable that he opts to try and tune out whenever possible.

It looks as if Hayman called upon plenty of favours when it came to the supporting cast, as some of Scotland's best actors, from screen and stage, are involved. A young Robert Carlyle may be the best known, but there are turns from Tom Watson, Sandy Morton, Caroline Paterson, Julie Graham, Johnathon Battersby and, as another screen version of Jimmy Boyle, Paul Samson. Hayman manages to get incredibly realistic performances from the cast which make the more magical flights of Winters' imagination all the more powerful.

I can't find the trailer online but here's a great clip of David Hayman being interviewed alongside producer Paddy Higson about the film:

Silent Scream is a powerful film that depicts real human tragedy. It never shies away from the fact that its central character was a convicted murderer, or that Winters was a complex and troubled man who was often holding onto his sanity by his fingernails, but it is more balanced than you will expect. For every abusive police officer or prison guard, there are reformers who, perhaps naively, trust their charges, and who are determined that prison should be about rehabilitation as well as punishment. There are flashbacks to Winters' childhood years, but these are not stereotypically grim, and he appears to have had a mostly happy time. Hayman gives no easy answers or trite excuses. You may read this review and want to avoid Silent Scream like the plague, but I urge you to think again. It is grim and violent in places, although nothing like A Sense of Freedom, but it is more about the, perhaps short and rare, moments of pleasure that can lift even the most apparently wretched spirit, and the redemptive power of artistic expression. It is a film that is, despite the tragic conclusion, surprisingly life affirming.

Seventh Heaven: It's the Scots Whay Hae! podcast...

2011-11-19T12:59:00.000Z

In the seventh Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali talks to Kirsty Neary about her latest novel Abstract/Concrete and editor Sam Best about Octavius, a new online literary magazine for students. There is lots of chat about writing methods (both dos and don'ts), the thorny question of genre fiction, the difficulty in getting published, the merits of The Lion King, and much much more.

Kirsty's novel (see left) is set in a dystopian Glasgow of 2024, and is spookily prescient about today's social/political situation. Octavius magazine is awaiting all submissions as long as you are currently a student in a Scottish university, college or school. We hear plenty from writers and critics who are established that it is easy to forget those who are at the beginning of their literary careers, whether writing, publishing or reviewing, and it is refreshing to listen to different points of view about Scottish writing and all things cultural.

You can read all about Kirsty's writing, and buy her books, by going to wildwolfpublishing.com.
For all the information about Octavius (left), including how to submit, then head along to octaviusmagazine.
You can listen and subscribe to the podcast on itunes at Scots Whay Hae! podcast at iTunes, or you may prefer RSS; Scots Whay Hae! podcast on RSS

In the next podcast we hope to have an interview with one of Scotland's best known and regarded writers. I'm not being enigmatic, just wary of letting you down, and a bit of mystery is always a good thing. To find out who it is return to these pages in a couple of weeks time. Until then we hope you enjoy No 7.

Congratulations to Louise Anne Geddes who wins a copy of Alasdair Gray's Lanark by correctly answering the question posed in the last podcast blog; in Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Sandy's surname is indeed Stranger.

Not The Face: The Little Kicks Are On The Road...

2011-11-16T13:01:00.001Z

There does seem to be something stirring in the North, and one of the best bands to come out of a growing Aberdeen scene are The Little Kicks. They are currently on tour promoting their album The Little Kicks which is released on 28/11/11. They have already been to Sneaky Pete's in Edinburgh but here are the rest of their Scottish dates:

16TH Nov MILK @ FLAT 0/1, GLASGOW
17TH Nov BEATCLUB @ CAFE CONTINENTAL, GOUROCK
18TH Nov CAPE, STIRLING
19TH Nov THE TUNNELS, ABERDEEN

I hear influences such as Love, The Beatles, Teenage Fanclub, in fact if you like classic pop with hooks and melodies then you are going to approve. Catch them if you can as they are almost certain to be playing less intimate venues in the future and you can't beat seeing the whites of a bands eyes. For a taste of what to expect here's one of those album trailers which seem to be popular these days followed by a clip of them playing live at Aberdeen's legendary Lemon Tree:

To learn more about The Little Kicks go to The Little Kicks where there are lots of video clips and downloadable tunes. You want more right now? Of course you do. Here's the single Call of Youth, which is one of my favourite songs of the year, and which is free to download at their website:

You Have Been Watching...Mary of Scotland

2011-11-14T23:09:00.000Z

From seeing her opposite Cary Grant in Holiday at an early age I have always been a little bit in love with Katherine Hepburn, so when I discovered that one of her earliest films was Mary of Scotland, where she plays Mary Queen of Scots, I knew I had to get a copy.

Made in 1936, the film is a fairly historically accurate telling of Mary's return from France to claim her rightful place on the throne of Scotland, becoming a threat to her cousin Elizabeth's reign in England. Her life becomes a battle between heart and head as she puts aside her love for the Earl of Bothwell, played here by Frederic March as a kilted lover and fighter, to marry the politically expedient choice of Lord Darnley, who is a foppish womanising alcoholic, but who has a claim to the throne of England and brings the possibility of uniting the thrones.

This love triangle is at the heart of the film, but the most important relationship is the one between the two Queens. Hepburn plays Mary as a stoic, strong and principled woman who is determined to overcome sexism and sectarianism to try and unite the country and keep the power hungry Lords in check. Elizabeth is played by Florence Eldridge, and she is portrayed as scheming, devious and ruthless, willing to stop at nothing to protect her crown. For those who believe that English monarchs get a raw deal from Hollywood (Patrick McGoohan as Edward Longshanks in Braveheart readily springs to mind) this will do nothing to persuade them that there is not a bias. Superficially there is a difference too as Liz is constantly needing reassurance about her looks whereas Mary looks like Katherine Hepburn, and knows it.

Other key characters include Donald Crisp's Lord Huntly, Ian Keith as Mary's brother Moray and Gavin Muir as Leicester, all of whom grasp their characters with gusto. Moroni Olsen plays reformer, and anti all things Roman, John Knox in a terrific cameo. But the most interesting piece of casting for me is that of John Carradine, father of David and Keith, as the Queen's Italian consort David Rizzio. Carradine became a genuine Hollywood cult legend going on to appear in many genre movies, but here he exemplifies another country, one of art, literature, music and Catholicism. The Lords are suspicious of him and his influence on Mary and through him we see the prejudices of the time and place played out.

Here's the trailer:

Mary of Scotland was critically well received but was a commercial flop. Hepburn (left as Mary) had a few films in her early career which underwhelmed at the box office and this led to her being thought of as 'box-office poison', a label she carried until the huge success of The Philadelphia Story in 1940 before going on to become legend. Frederic March, who is probably best known for playing both Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in the 1931 version of Stevenson's tale, went on to make many more movies, including one of my favourites, 1960's Inherit the Wind opposite Spencer Tracy and Gene Kelly. If you are a sucker for courtroom dramas then you should seek it out.

If you are a fan of Hollywood's Golden Age of the 1930s and 40s then Mary of Scotland has lots to interest you. The sets are impressive and detailed, the costumes are beautiful as well as being less than subtle signifiers as to who to cheer for and who to boo. The direction is assured, which is no surprise as it was directed by John Ford who would go on to work on The Grapes of Wrath, The Searchers, The Quiet Man and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Mary of Scotland is not Ford, or Hepburn, at their best but for film historians, or simply historians, this is a film which should be seen.

Have You Ever Had it Blue?: A Review of The Blue Book...

2011-11-11T11:49:00.000Z

A new A.L Kennedy novel is always cause for celebration, and her latest The Blue Book is worthy of a raised glass or two. It again proves that there are few writers who can match her playfully perverse way with plot and prose, employing a literary slight of hand that takes readers to unexpected places. This is never more obvious than with The Blue Book.

Before you even read page one you are made aware that there is something intriguing in store. The hardback is a beautiful blue with gold lettering and the picture of an upturned palm. It is reminiscent of a religious or cultural text (think King James, Mao or Qadaffi), or an old book of spells, which suggests that the reader is in for some sort of instruction.

The novel is a love story, but what unfolds is a tale which is an unconventional exegesis on human nature and which attempts to answer 1980's electro-pop pixie Howard Jones' question; 'what is love anyway?'. The troubled lovers are Elizabeth (also known as Beth), and Arthur whose relationship is played out in a mixture of flashbacks and the present day. This has the effect of throwing the reader off track as the nature of their strong bond has to be deciphered and then understood. Few writers play with their readership as Kennedy does and it is typical that she would set her story in the shadowy world of psychics (which explains an acknowledgment to Derren Brown).

Arthur teaches Beth how to 'read' people and they go on to work together exploiting this ability using various codes and 'tells', particularly preying on those who are at their most vulnerable. The problem is that once this particular Pandora's Box has been opened there is no way back, and they use their knowledge to look for the same signifiers in themselves which, in a karmic twist, ruins any chance they have of ever trusting each other, or anyone. By living lives which thrive by dealing in other people's misery they appear to have destroyed any chance not only of having a happy life together, but also apart. Can't live with, can't live without.

There are other strong supporting characters, particularly Derek, Beth's hapless and cuckolded boyfriend, and the friendly couple Francis and Bunny, but this is a tale of Arthur and Beth, and through them Kennedy tackles notions of romantic ideals. Is love anything more than the manipulation, deliberate or otherwise, of individuals needs and desires? Are we decieved by others or simply deceiving ourselves? As usual Kennedy manages to walk a fine line between scepticism and hope, an act which is difficult to pull off without appearing non committal, especially when dealing with something as abstract as love, but by giving no easy answers she ultimately lets the reader decide for themselves .

Kennedy uses her own tricks and illusions in the novel. The numerical codes which Arthur teaches Beth are replicated in some of the page numbers which at times appear randomly out of sync (although I'm sure there is nothing random in any of Kennedy's fiction). You can't escape the feeling that she is manipulating her readers as Arthur and Beth do their audiences. While there is certainly no delusion that what the two undertake is deception on a despicable scale, using the hurt and hope of the most vulnerable to make their living, there is a brief nod to the idea that perhaps they are providing a service which gives some people closure after personal loss. However, this is only referenced when Arthur inparticular seeks to justify his life and relieve the guilt. As the novel reaches a conclusion (of sorts) perspective and sympathies are pulled all over the place and point of view and storytelling themselves are explored. Kennedy is not content simply to tell a story but to make us question just how it is told.

The Blue Book sees Kennedy put together a run of three novels, the others being Paradise and Day, which are remarkable in their quality and scope. It may be a bold claim but I love reading her more than almost any other living writer, with the only downside being that she does make me want to abandon all thoughts of writing myself in bouts of post novel inadequacy (this has happened after all of the aforementioned novels). But then I realise that the world doesn't need another A.L Kennedy, we should just praise the heavens that we have the one we do.

Wrapped Up in Books: The 6th Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-11-07T20:49:00.000Z

Out today is the sixth Scots Whay Hae! podcast which sees Ronnie Young join Chris Ward and Ali Braidwood (see their cheeky faces to the left) to try and sort out the best five Scottish novels of all time. There are tears, tantrums and tissues, mainly down to triple man flu, as they agree, then disagree, before agreeing to disagree over the final five.

Listen to three grown men try to avoid talking over each other, and marvel at how Scots Whay Hae! is falsely accused (or are they) of bullying their guest into accepting a final conclusion. If you don't agree with the outcome then please let us know. If there is enough dissent then we may even have a follow up podcast to consider your alternatives.

In the meantime you can win a copy of Alasdair Gray's Lanark by answering the following question:
'In Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie what is Sandy's surname?'
Email your answers to scotswhayhae@gmail.com and the winning name will be the first one pulled from my auld bunnit.

You can subscribe to the podcast on itunes by going to Scots Whay Hae! at iTunes or by RSS here Scots Whay Hae! on RSS

The next podcast will be available in around two weeks time and will see Ali joined by resident film expert Kirsty Neary with her writer's hat on talking about her latest novel Abstract/Concrete. Also, writer/editor Sam Best will explain all about the new literary magazine for students which is known as Octavius. If you are interested in submitting, or know someone who should, then you can learn more at octaviusmagazine.

Future podcasts are shaping up to be tremendously exciting with some big name guests, and some guests with big names. You can decide who is which.

You Have Been Watching...Perfect Sense

2011-11-04T23:58:00.000Z

What I have discovered when talking to people about Scottish film directors is that few seem to split opinion as David Mackenzie does. Usually I can see other points of view even if I don't agree with them, but when I look at just a selection of Mackenzie's body of work; The Last Great Wilderness, Young Adam, Hallam Foe and now Perfect Sense, it seems unarguable that this is one of the most visually interesting, and risky, directors around. There are flaws in his films, often because he takes those risks, but surely these are out weighed by the importance of the ideas and issues that he is asking his audiences to deal with.

Perhaps Perfect Sense, his latest film, shows this better than any of his previous work. There are scenes which are excessive and which, if viewed in isolation, will seem ludicrous, but Mackenzie is proposing an excessive scenario. Global panic begins as everyone feels uncontrollable and inexplicable grief before they start to lose their senses one by one, with the loss of smell being just the beginning.

The central story in Perfect Sense is the love affair that unfolds between Ewan McGregor's Michael and Eva Green's Susan as chaos erupts all around. There is a sense (excuse me) that the need for love becomes heightened as the senses begin to fail, that strong bonds need to be formed before it is too late. The love affair could be viewed as unromantic for those reasons, that there is a need rather than a deep desire. As the world returns to nature, or loses its nature, the most primal needs come to the fore. Just as humanity is finding a way to survive these sensual losses, so Michael and Eva discover that each set back only makes them stronger. Through their relationship we are each being asked to consider how we would react in such circumstances, something which the best science fiction always demands.

The two leads are excellent. It is made clear from the beginning that Michael and Susan are not easy people to like. He unceremoniously kicks a conquest out of bed claiming that he 'can't sleep if someone else is in the bed', while she has just had her heart broken and believes she will never find anyone again, setting her stall against all men. Her initial reluctance to engage with this cocky womaniser is completely understandable, but what is of interest is that they break down any initial pretence to who they are to lay themselves bare to each other, eventually labelling themselves 'Mr and Mrs Arsehole'. The scenes where they break down or lose control are often wild, but this is not a film that demands realism, this is emotion that comes from somewhere other than the heart, more likely in the form of something altering the brain, and as such no one can know how this would unfold. Here's the trailer:

The support cast is well chosen if lightly used. Connie Nielsen is a strong, reliable presence as Susan's sister, Denis Lawson (who I consider the best actor in his family) is Michael's boss struggling to keep his restaurant open as people's requirements change. There is the 'other' Ewan, Mr Bremner, who is on top form in a fairly undemanding role, and there is something appealing seeing Renton and Spud together on screen again, and also Mackenzie's actor brother Alistair who plays one of Susan's fellow scientists and, at the risk of repeating myself, he is an underrated screen presence who should be better known. Here is a film of the cast and director discussing Perfect Sense:

I can agree that David Mackenzie is an inconsistent film maker, but this is often down to the quality of the material he is asked to deal with. Remember that this is someone who wants to make films. You cannot imagine that he would wait 9 years between releases as Lynne Ramsay did between Morvern Callar and We Need to Talk About Kevin (see you-have-been-watchingwe-need-to-talk). That is not to have a pop at Ramsay, or other film makers such as Terence Malick or Peter Mullan who, admirably, only want to make films which mean something intensely personal to them. Mackenzie is often an auteur for hire, similar to Steven Soderbergh, and will make the best, and he does, of fairly underwhelming scripts, but even when he is dealing with the more frothy end of things, as in the T in the Park set You Instead (see you-have-been-watching...you instead) he is always interesting, with a eye for the unusual and a visual flair which is rare. When he gets to experiment, as he does in Young Adam, Hallam Foe and Perfect Sense, then there are few other directors who make movies which are as entertaining even as they confront the audience with uncomfortable propositions. He is someone who does not shy away from confronting the big ideas and we need film makers who will engage with difficult and thought provoking material.

808 State: The Best Music from October...

2011-11-01T18:40:00.000Z

It's time for the musical roundup for October, and it has been an autumnal belter. Music that has come my way by hook and crook includes the new album Honestly, This World from The Moth and the Mirror, the solo debut from ex De Rosa frontman Martin John Henry The Other Half of Everything and the excellently named Edinburgh School for the Deaf with their album New Youth Bible and there are samples of these albums below. There's also tracks from The Bird and the Monkey, and solo material from everyone's favourite Belle and Seb (surely); it's only Stevie Jackson.

First off are The Moth and the Mirror who have been described elsewhere as an indie supergroup, which seems to me to be a bit of a contradiction in terms. You can find all about them by going to Olive Grove Records and make your own mind up. Yes there are well kent faces, and voices involved, but all I really care about is that they can do this. This is a live version of Honestly, This World:

Next are Edinburgh School for the Deaf and they make a lovely noise. Imagine Phil Spector's Wall of Sound played through the Reid brothers equipment at slightly the wrong speed and you'll begin to get the idea. This, in case you're in any doubt, is a very good thing. Here they are with Memories of Wounds:

The Bird and the Monkey got in touch and said, 'hello, we think you'll like us', and they were right. I'm always a sucker for interesting videos and they have plenty to accompany their songs which are a little psychedelic and a little electronic with something of the night about them. You can find a further selection by going to thebirdandthemonkey. For fellow spectacle fetishists the following clip is a delight. This is the track they call Moon Moth:

I saw Martin John Henry support The Seventeenth Century last year, a night where he showcased his new songs. Since then his album The Other Half of Everything has been the one I have been waiting for. Now it's here and it does not disappoint. If you want to know what the man himself thinks about the tracks then have a look at this excellent interview with Peenko (see Peenko/Martin John Henry). Henry has a way with melody and lyrical twists which places him above many others who try this sort of thing. As a taster here is the first single Ribbon on a Bough:

Finally for the October selection here is a solo single from Stevie Jackson, taken from his brilliantly named album I Can't Get No Stevie Jackson. You can read all about it, including all his forthcoming tour dates, by going to steviejackson. This is a terrific video for Feel the Morning, and it's all you would expect, and just a little more:

I hope that gives you something to mull over on those cold november nights. Make mine a Horlicks.

You Have Been Watching...We Need to Talk About Kevin

2011-10-30T20:58:00.004Z

In recent discussions about the best Scottish filmmaker at work currently I made the claim that Peter Mullen was the most interesting around. It's a terrible admission, but I had completely forgotten about Lynne Ramsay, although perhaps understandable when you consider she hadn't troubled our cinema screens since 2002's adaptation of Alan Warner's novel Morvern Callar. With the release of We Need to Talk About Kevin, she's back, and how.

Ramsay is a filmmaker primarily concerned with the visual, which I hope isn't as daft as it sounds. If you think of the framing and muted pallete of her debut feature Ratcatcher or the move from the neon and dark of Oban to the searing light and shimmer of Ibiza in Morvern Callar, the way a film looks and feels is as important to her as what is being said, but with We Need to Talk About Kevin she raises her game even higher. This is a visual feast which matches the colours and landscapes to the unfolding story. Ramsay trusts her audience enough to make it obvious from the beginning that something terrible has happened as she is more interested in the journey rather than the chilling destination. Her use of colour reminds me of the films of Peter Greenaway, except here it is not just an art house pretension but vital to a terrible story. Perhaps a more apt comparison is with the work of Powell and Pressburger, whose films were elaborately depicted, but never to the detriment of the tale told. Certainly the use of red as a key colour in We Need to Talk About Kevin flags up that there will be blood in the most artistic manner since Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now, adding atmosphere and building audience anticipation as the film moves towards its inevitable climax.

It's interesting to consider that Ramsay's last two films are literary adaptations as she keeps the dialogue to a minimum in both and lets the camera and the performers tell the story. In We Need to Talk About Kevin there are lots of lingering shots and close ups, perhaps none better then when the camera moves in to focus on Kevin's pupils that have an archery target reflected in them. There are also some lovely call backs to previous Ramsay movies, with a scene in a dream-like supermarket, and a man dancing to his own music at the Christmas party, both reflecting similar scenes in Morvern Callar. Here's the trailer:

Aside from Ramsay, this is Tilda Swinton's film, which is not to take anything away from a great supporting cast. I honestly cannot think of an unconvincing Swinton performance, going back to her early days as muse to Derek Jarman or in John Byrne's TV series from 1990, Your Cheatin' Heart (see Your Cheatin' Heart), so I wasn't surprised at how good she is here, but often, with the exception of 1992's Orlando, she is used as support rather than in central roles, perhaps too unconventional to be thought of as lead material. Ramsay would never hold with such prejudice and Swinton, as troubled matriarch Eva, is in almost every frame of We Need to Talk About Kevin managing to convey the pain, distrust, horror, confusion and weariness required if we are to believe how the central relationship in the film unfolds. Here's a clip of Lynne Ramsay and Ezra Miller singing Swinton's praises:

As Eva's husband Franklin, John C. Reilly is as reliable as always and special mention should be made of the two 'Kevins', Jasper Newell and Ezra Miller, who both manage to exude hatred, menace and a chilling moral ambiguity. Where Ramsay is expressive when it comes to the process of film making, she keeps the performances from her actors subtle and nuanced. A film which could have been over the top and sensational is all the more effecting for using knowing glances and passive aggressive exchanges between mother and son.

I've seen two films this week by two of Scotland's best filmmakers, the other being David Mackenzie's Perfect Sense. There will be a review of that in the coming week, but suffice to say that when placed alongside We Need to Talk About Kevin and last year's NEDS, you have three of the best films by Scottish directors in the last twenty years. All three do far more than entertain, they stay with you long after you leave the cinema and ask us to consider love, life, family, morality and existence in a manner that is exhilarating and disturbing. I can't wait to see what Peter Mullan and David Mackenzie do next, but that applies especially to Lynne Ramsay. I just hope it's not going to be another 9 years before we find out.

Pack Mentality: The 5th Scots Whay Hae Podcast...

2011-10-27T13:38:00.000+01:00

The fifth Scots Whay Hae! podcast is now available for you to download and listen to. It is an hour of interview with novelist, playwright, and performer Alan Bissett who talks about his novels Boyracers, The Incredible Adam Spark, Death of a Ladies Man and, particularly, his latest novel Pack Men (see Only A Game: A Review of Alan Bissett's Pack Men) before moving on to a fascinating discussion about contemporary Scottish writing.

Its rare to get one of Scotland's best novelists talking unedited or interrupted for an hour, and this is one of the things we aim to do with these podcasts, to let people talk about their work and passions for as long as they like, something it is increasingly difficult to get elsewhere. During the conversation with Alan there is a lot of information packed into the hour and I hope you find it as fascinating and enjoyable to listen to as we did recording it.

You can download the podcast by going to Scots Whay Hae! at iTunes or Scots Whay Hae! by RSS . The sixth podcast will be the long awaited 'Top Scottish Novels of all Time' episode, which sees Ali, Chris and friend of the pod Ronnie Young fighting their corner to get their selections onto the final list. As it's already been recorded I can promise it will be with you in the next fortnight. Until then I hope you enjoy number 5.

If you've never read any Alan Bissett then I hope the podcast will persuade you to do so. As an added incentive here is a review of his debut novel Boyracers which first appeared in the July 2010 edition of Indelible Ink over at Dear Scotland:

Alan Bissett’s ‘Boyracers’
by Alistair Braidwood

There are many ways to start a novel, but surely one of the most arresting of recent times can be found in Alan Bissett’s ‘Boyracers’, which opens:

‘like rebel angels, bright, restless, sensually attuned to the flux and flow of mortal Falkirk, Belinda our chariot, our spirit guide, the wind rushing up and past her face thrust against it like some wide-o Helen of Troy.’

Straight in. Nae messin. It puts me in mind of an early Springsteen lyric, if The Boss had been brought up near Callender Park, Falkirk rather than Asbury Park, NJ. The novel doesn’t relent in the pace set by this opening gambit, at least not until near the end when reality starts to invade the Boyracers lives.

I mentioned last month that there are similarities between Gordon Legge’s ‘The Shoe’, and Bissett’s debut. Both deal with the lives of a close group of friends as they make the transition from school to whatever comes next. Re-reading ‘Boyracers’ made me realise that the main difference between the two novels is to do with pace, both of life and in terms of writing. There may only be 12 years between the two novels, but they seem further removed from each other than that.

The reason for this can be found with the respective groups. Until I compared the two I had forgotten just what a difference a couple of years can make in your teens. 15-16 year olds’ lives tend to be very different from those of 17-18 year olds. In Legge’s book there is a sense of what has been left behind, and the characters are being pulled towards adulthood and all that threatens to entail. Their hopes and dreams are already being dashed. ‘Boyracers’ pull is from the other end of the teenage spectrum. For them the stronger pull is from school, as Alvin, Brian, Frannie and Dolby find themselves desperately holding on to the lives that they need to leave behind. This is classic teen angst material, as poignant as ‘The Last Picture Show’, ‘American Graffiti’ or any John Hughes’ movie. The group are being threatened with disbandment but don’t want to face this fact, so live their last days together at breakneck speed to avoid impending reality.

There is no plot as such, just time spent with the boys as they drive the streets of Falkirk and the surrounding area and dream of escape (some with more intensity than others), football, favourite movies and music, and girls. There is a natural energy that occurs when they are together, with Frannie bursting into song or Dolby criticising the group’s respective cultural tastes, although they escape relatively easily when compared to other characters that they encounter. That is how people are judged, and this jury is a harsh one. Watch the wrong film, listen to the wrong tunes, and your dead to them.

Music and popular culture are hugely important to the dynamic of this group, placing it not only alongside ‘The Shoe’, but also ‘Morvern Callar’, ‘Trainspotting’ and John Niven’s ‘Kill Your Friends’ in the novels featured here in the past few months whose characters, and authors, show similar obsessive tendencies. The excitement that is felt, for instance, at the prospect of a new U2 album is brilliantly captured and reminds the weary and cynical just how important music is to a teenage fan.

The scene where they argue over the respective meanings of Deacon Blue’s ‘Dignity’ and ‘Wages Day’ is typical of the varying levels of banter. When Alvin claims that ‘Progress is a capitalist myth.’ Brian retorts ‘You’re a capitalist myth, ya c**t!’ and the cracks that are beginning to show, and which will eventually lead them in different directions, are made clear. Even their arguments, although they are about so much more, take place in a pop-cultural context. What gives this scene a cinematic quality is the fact that ‘Wages Day’ is playing on the car stereo as the argument progresses. Is it an attack on capitalism or a simple celebration of payday? You can decide for yourself:

‘Boyracers’ is not really a typical Scottish novel. It owes a lot to American writers such as S.E. Hinton or even Kerouac. Kerouac crossed with Kelman perhaps. But most of all I think it owes a debt to American cinema, both in terms of the character’s tastes and the overall feel. Frannie rates women in terms of ‘Star Wars’ characters (a spectrum which ranges from Princess Leia to Jabba the Hutt), Dolby is stunned when he meets a girl who has never read an X-Men comic, and Alvin’s reading material is ‘The Great Gatsby’. There are plenty of more localised references, but American cultural rules rule, and I feel that the spirit of the novel also feels American, in the best possible sense. It seems to me that Bissett is an optimist, and that is incredibly rare amongst Scottish writers. If you feel that’s harsh then please name me another five. I can think of two. Yes, there is the storyline about Alvin’s dysfunctional family, but the reader is always sure that he is heading for better things. The hope, for once, isn’t false.

Scottish books for teenagers are, as far as I can tell, few and far between. Scottish literature in Scottish schools is still under represented, and after you’ve done ‘Sunset Song’, a bit of Burns, Liz Lochhead and/or Edwin Morgan and, if you are lucky, something a bit more modern, you’re considered to have done well. If anyone wants a suggestion as to a book for older school kids, Scottish or otherwise, then I propose Alan Bissett’s ‘Boyracers’ as he manages to avoid the cynicism of his contemporaries, while never being less than honest and entertaining. The book’s central characters are living lives that are recognisable to most young people; and to those of you who remember what that time was like, and those who have forgotten, this is a book to bring a knowing smile to your face, and an ache for your own salad days.

Alistair

Scots Whay Hae's Greatest Scottish Album...Ever!

2011-10-20T13:09:00.000+01:00

As you'll all know STV are currently trying to put together 'Scotland's Greatest Album'TM by committee and public votes. Well Chris Ward, who you have heard on the Scots Whay Hae! podcast asked me if I could put together my own album for his own podcast Seen Your Video where we could share and compare. (It's actually more of a mix-tape as Chris rightly points out. The 'Greatest Scottish Album' is Hats by The Blue Nile. I could have saved them all that bother.)

You can hear the resulting chat and justifications by heading over there now, but I thought it would be quite nice, for me if no one else, to have all my songs available in one handy place for easy comparison. So here they are in video form (sending everyone a tape was just going to be too much hassle). It comprises of three songs from the 1970s, three from the 80s, then 90s and finally the 00s. I hope you approve of at least some of them:

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band: Next

The Sweet: Ballroom Blitz

The Skids: Into the Valley

The Blue Nile: The Downtown Lights

The Cocteau Twins: Pearly Dewdrops Drop

The Jesus and Mary Chain: Just Like Honey

Teenage Fanclub: Sparky's Dream

Belle and Sebastian: The Boy with the Arab Strap

Arab Strap: The First Big Weekend

Primal Scream: Accelerator

Ballboy: I Hate Scotland

Mylo: In Your Arms

These are my selections, now tell me yours (if you like).

You Have Been Watching...Burke & Hare

2011-10-18T16:38:00.000+01:00

If you were to make a list of directors that can successfully marry comedy and horror then Jon Landis would have to be on there somewhere near the top. This is the man whose films include Schlock, An American Werewolf in London, The Twilight Zone and the underrated Innocent Blood as well as overseeing Thriller (not exactly comedy, but certainly amusing). So when I heard that he was to direct the latest take on the Burke & Hare story then my hopes were high.

Then the cast was announced and included Andy Serkis, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Curry and, reunited at last, Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes. There were also to be cameos from Bill Bailey, Christopher Lee and Ronnie Corbert as well as many of British comedies best known faces including Stephen Merchant, Paul Whitehouse, Reece Sheersmith and Michael Smiley (another Spaced alumni). The only piece of casting I was worried about was Isla Fisher as the romantic interest, but I can admit that may be due to my Aussie soap blinkers (it took me ages to admit that Guy Pearce is a top talent).

The story itself is one which has become well known. Irish immigrants William Burke and William Hare are supposed to have made a living by selling corpses to renowned Edinburgh physician Dr Robert Knox for use in his anatomy lectures. The popular story is that, running out of natural deaths, they took matters into their own hands and started murdering victims, a situation about which the good doctor asked no questions. Even though life expectancy in the Old Town of Edinburgh in the 1820s was not great, such a spate of deaths drew notice and they were soon dubbed The West Port murders. If you don't know the story I won't spoil it here, but the tale of the two is mentioned in Robert Louis Stevenson's story 'The Bodysnatcher' and the characters have appeared in many films and TV shows including Colin Baker era Doctor Who, the TV version of the Twilight Zone and the 1970's exploitation flick Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde. Here is the trailer to Jon Landis' version:

The 2010 film, despite the promise of people and plot, is a disappointment. The humour is dire and the scares, with a couple of exceptions, are just not scary. When that lets you down in a horror/comedy then the rest would have to be brilliant to make up. However the pluses are few and infrequent. Tom Wilkinson is as good as ever as the morally dubious Dr Knox, and Tim Curry is wasted as his rival Professor Alexander Monro. It is when the plot focuses on the battle between these two surgeons, and the chance to receive the King's patronage, that the film is at its best, but those scenes are too few and not enough to save the film. Once you've enjoyed the initial appearance of Ronnie Corbett as the captain of the Edinburgh militia then there's not much further fun to be had.

The main problem the film has is with the two leading men. Serkis is mean enough as to be believable as someone who could turn his hand to murder, but you have no sympathy for him, whereas Pegg, who often looks as if he doesn't want to be there, is feckless and easily manipulated. The claim that he acts 'for love' is ludicrous and has the effect of making him appear simple. When these two are put forward as the heroes of the piece then the reaction to their fate is 'meh'. You just don't care. When David Kessler kills in An American Werewolf in London after being bitten by a wolf it is forgiveable because he fights against his vulpine nature, and he is not to blame (unless you are very hard line in your attitude to free will). In Burke & Hare the behaviour of the two men is unforgivable. That is the fundamental problem with the film, there is little humour to be found in the subject matter

There have been two other notable films which deal with the Burke and Hare story, both of which are superior to this one. The first to mention is the 1973 film The Horrors of Burke and Hare, which is a straight down the line, Hammer style, horror movie and which doesn't stint on the claret. But if you only watch one film about murders and grave robbing in 1820's Edinburgh, make it 1945's The Body Snatcher which starts Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff. Lugosi in particular is outstanding in his best role since playing the Count. Its a great piece of cinema, better than any screen version of the more famous Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde: Here's the trailer:

There is not enough horror made in Scotland when you consider the Gothic tradition that runs from Walter Scott and James Hogg through Stevenson and George MacDonald to James Robertson and Louise Welsh in the present day. Only Stevenson has been well served by cinema. The standout example of a Scottish horror is The Wicker Man (see You Have Been Watching...The Wicker Man), but its success only goes to highlight the dearth elsewhere. I worry that horror is seen as too genre, and therefore not as 'worthy' by those who fund such things. There are always rumours about big screen adaptations of Hogg's The Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner and Louise Welsh's The Cutting Room, both of which I would be first in the queue to see. Until then I would suggest getting a copy of Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers and maybe leave Burke & Hare alone, unless you are a Pegg, Landis or Corbett completest.

Elegantly Wasted: A Review of Allan Wilson's Wasted in Love...

2011-10-16T13:52:00.000+01:00

In 1974 rock journo Jon Landau returned from a gig and proclaimed 'I have seen the future of rock n'roll and its name is Bruce Springsteen'. Well I've been reading Allan Wilson's debut collection of short stories, Wasted in Love, and its really very good indeed. But don't take my word for it, none other than legendary Scots' poet Tom Leonard has said 'He reads like the real thing...terrific debut anthology', and you don't argue with Mr Leonard.

I first became aware of the work of Wilson when his short story 'The End' was included in last year's anthology The Year of Open Doors, and, considering he was sharing pages with some of Scotland's best writers, the fact his was one of the highlights spoke well for what was to come. Publishers Cargo obviously thought so too as they signed him up sharpish, the result of which is Wasted in Love. I interviewed Allan on the last Scots Whay Hae! podcast and what is clear is that this is someone who lives to write, who would do so (and indeed did so) even if no one was reading his work. Having spoken to people who had read these stories before publication, and whose opinions I respect, I was sure that this was a collection that wouldn't disappoint. There was, to paraphrase Paul McStay, a buzz about the place.

Don't think for a minute this is hype without substance. Wasted in Love is all about the writing. There are glimpses into lives and relationships which are dissected with a surgeon's precision. Wilson understands people; their hopes, dreams, insecurities and fears. He knows what makes people tick, and what makes them fall apart and touches upon the good, bad and ugly sides to human nature confronting all three with great honesty. He doesn't shy away from looking at racism, betrayal, lust, deception and violence but this is not simple gritty, urban realism. There is often a tenderness to be found in difficult circumstances, the belief that love, either given or received, holds the possibility for salvation. Unfortunately, for some, that love is wasted.

He also has an ear for how people talk to each other, often hiding more than they reveal. His scenarios detail universal concerns, but his pinpoint use of Glaswegian phraseology places them not only in a place, but also in the present day. There are references to Alasdair Gray and Belle and Sebastian, snatches of song lyrics from Arab Strap and The Smiths, late night visits to burger vans and kebab shops, and meetings in pubs and clubs which change people's lives, at least for a while. What is remarkable is that Wilson manages to make readers care about his protagonists in only a few pages. This is because these are people who find themselves in circumstances that we all, to a greater or lesser degree, can recognise and empathise, if not always sympathise, with.

At the core of Wasted in Love and the characters who inhabit its pages is the knowledge that individuals are looking for happiness with no real understanding of what that might entail or how to achieve it. This goes some way to explaining, if not excusing, the moral ambiguity and straightforward bad behaviour that Wilson's men, and they are almost always men, display. As Springsteen once sang 'Everybody's got a hungry heart', something Allan Wilson understands all too well.

Wilson Filip: The Fourth Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-10-11T22:49:00.000+01:00

In the fourth Scots Whay Hae!podcast Ali interviews author Allan Wilson about the publication of his début collection of short stories Wasted In Love and along the way they talkAlexander Trocchi, James Kelman, Charles Bukowski, Arab Strap, the importance of being carefully taught and the current Scots' literary landscape.Hear Ali’s brain melt as he realises that he is too old to function properly after onlyfour hours sleep, try and work out who says the phrase ‘I think’ the most, continue the sweepstake fun as to how often Ali says 'absolutely, and,if you’re name is Alan Bissett, blush as you are praised to the heavens.

Recorded on Sunday morning (the last time that'll be happening) this is a fascinating insight into the life of one of Scotland's most promising young writers. You'll be able to read a full review of 'Wasted In Love' on these pages in the next couple of days, but until that happens we hope you enjoy around 50 mins of quality blether.

You can listen and subscribe at Scots Whay Hae! at itunes or subscribe by RSS by going to Scots Whay Hae! Pod Feed.

Congratulations to Iain Macdonald who wins a copy of Ron Butlin's Night Visits for spotting that Francis in The Wasp Factory was brought up as a boy, and not a girl as was mistakenly claimed in the last podcast. Deliberate mistake? You decide.

Some people will note that some of the things we talk about have already come to pass, for instance stuff that may be happening on the day of recording. We hope this will not be too much of a pain, but we decided to record our chats as live, and these are the results. But all feedback will be gratefully received.

William, You Were Really Something: A review of Tom Doyle's The Glamour Chase...

2011-10-11T14:02:00.003+01:00

There are certain people whose influence, and the interest in their lives, far outweigh the success that they achieve. Call it charisma or cultish appeal, it is not simply about what they do, but also how they do it. The life in itself becomes something to be deconstructed and discussed, often over and above the work they produce. Examples include Alexander Trocchi, Jack Kerouac, James Dean, Lord Byron and Billie Holliday. Billy Mackenzie was such a person; a man who had the looks of Dean and Byron, wrote with the obscure poetry of Kerouac, and whose voice was often compared to Lady Day, although so singular was this voice that you could never doubt that it was his and his alone.

Before I read Tom Doyle's biography of Mackenzie, The Glamour Chase: The Maverick Life of Billy Mackenzie, I knew the basics. I knew that Billy had a voice that could move me to tears, that The Associates, the band he shared with Alan Rankine, had produced some of the best music of the early eighties and, with their 1982 album Sulk, had made one of my favourite all time records. I knew that his subsequent music career was typified with more disappointment than success, but that when he got it right, as he did on collaborations with Yello and Barry Adamson, then that voice stood out in the increasingly bland pop landscape of the late 80s and early 90s.

Doyle's book fills in the gaps and goes some way to explaining both the appeal and career of Billy Mackenzie. What emerges is a picture of a man who just wasn't made for those times. The early days in Dundee, while not always idyllic, turn out to be the happiest of Billy Mackenzie's short life. The young man played, ran and sang with unbridled pleasure. As he gets older life continues to move at a blur which hints that this is a life which would burn out rather than fade away. There are marriages of convenience, money spent before it was earned, and friendships made and forgotten with what some would consider indecent haste. It is little wonder that Billy's companions of choice where whippets, which he succsesfully bred. They must of been the only ones who had a chance of keeping up.

The Glamour Chase is a book which, like the singer's voice, is suffused with melancholy and regret. As fellow torch singer Marc Almond remarks 'To sing like that, you have to know pain. Billy was a tortured soul.' This is true, and Doyle does a great job of examining the reasons for his torture, but what I have always taken from Billy Mackenzie was that he was able to move from sadness to almost elegiac highs, the voice soaring to lift your heart and soul. Have a listen, and look, at this clip of The Associates playing 'Party Fears Two', the song from Sulk which, to the casual listener, has defined Mackenzie's career. It moves from a kitchen sink scene to a dissection of love which sees his voice soaring above all, making those initial concerns insignificant. And watch Billy's face. As much as he tries to hide it (and considering the performance is obviously mimed), this is a man having the time of his life:

What becomes increasingly obvious is that Mackenzie was never more happy than when singing, although not necessarily in front of strangers or large crowds. His fear of flying would also have a crippling effect on his ability to tour, but he didn't need to make excuses, it seems that he was more than capable of deliberately sabotaging his own career. After Sulk, The Associates were one of the hottest properties around. Critically acclaimed by an increasingly hard to please music press, they were one of the few bands that could be on the cover of Smash Hits one week and the NME the next. The album made many end of year best of lists alongside Simple Mind's New Gold Dream, Orange Juice's You Can't Hide Your Love Forever and Altered Images Pinky Blue. When you add in records by Aztec Camera, Josef K and the debut single from The Blue Nile then 1982 was one of Scottish music's golden years. From Sulk this is 'Club Country':

It is clear that the prospect of fame and fortune began to terrify Mackenzie on a very base level causing him to self destruct, and some of the stories in The Glamour Chase are jaw dropping in the scale of excess, and can really only be explained as the acts of a man to whom life was an increasing struggle. Hiring rooms, and 'baby' sitters for his beloved whippets, in some of London's best hotels, moving from top restaurant to the next, stopping only to vomit in-between to make room for the next gourmet meal, or taking a taxi from London to Dundee, all in the pay of the record company, which would be fine except this was all added on to his advance. When you add in that the cost of the records were increasing as the sales diminished the story of Billy Mackenzie increasingly becomes one of disappointment and disillusion. Again it is music that saves the soul, and his most fruitful, and happiest, association after The Associates effectively disbanded was with Swiss electro-eccentrics Yello. Here is one of their collaborations, taken from the band's never completed project about another star whose life became an obsession for some. This is 'Norma Jean':

The goodwill towards Mackenzie, from family, friends and musicians alike, never wains. Although some decide that they can no longer work with him, there is little bitterness evident. Even his most excessive behaviour seems to be forgiven, often with a shrug that 'that was just Billy'. It's interesting to compare Doyle's book with last year's Nileism, the biography of The Blue Nile by Allan Brown, as there are similarities in the two tales. Both Mackenzie and The Blue Nile are hugely influential artists who tried to pave very individual career paths and who had to battle with record companies (often the same ones). But The Blue Nile apparently handled the situation much better than Mackenzie ever could, and maybe it is as simple as the fact that Mackenzie seemed determined to do it alone while The Blue Nile, most of the time, had each other. The paradox for Billy Mackenzie was that he needed collaborators yet refused to collaborate with them. It was, with the odd exception, Billy's way or no way at all.

Billy Mackenzie was obviously a complex man, and, although Doyle's book is a fascinating and gripping read, it is ultimately a tragic tale. Not only because Mackenzie died two years younger than I am now, but because what haunts the book is the question of what could have been. Among the dedications which bring the book to its close is this from Siouxsie Sioux who rightly says 'You couldn't not admire him as a vocalist. But there was a sense that he was let down, in that life wasn't big enough for him.' Or perhaps, as Don Mclean sang about another tortured artist, 'this world was never meant for one as beautiful as you'.

I'm going to leave you with Billy singing live at Ronnie Scott's in 1984. This is what he did best, and is how I will always remember him. This is 'Breakfast':

You can buy The Glamour Chase from Scots Whay Hae's Local Shop ,from Amazon and all good book stores.

You Have Been Watching...Just Another Saturday

2011-10-06T10:57:00.004+01:00

After the recent publication of Alan Bissett's Pack Men (see Pack Men), a novel which deals with, amongst other things, Scotland's sectarianism and how it is linked to religion, football and masculinity, I thought it would be worth watching Peter McDougall's controversial 'Play for Today' from 1975, Just Another Saturday. McDougall was granted unprecedented access to film the largest Orange Walk of the year, and the results still astonish today.

The film is a social commentary that remains relevant and, when you look at some of the scenes portrayed, then it's no surprise that no one has been allowed such access since. Those who permitted McDougall to film the walk must have been under the impression that he was going to show those who participate in a positive light, but, with the exception of one staged scene in Duncan Street, which is known to the band as 'Fenian Alley', McDougall simply points the camera and records what is around him.

It stars Jon Morrison as John, a young man who wakes up on the day of the walk full of excitement and expectation as he is going to be leading his band and swinging the mace. As his day progresses he starts to view things differently as communal celebration takes a darker turn. By the time he meets up with his mates in the evening, many of whom are Catholic, he is beginning to realise that such days can have life-long consequences and that what starts out as a day of excitement and colour can end in tragedy.

You may find it a stretch that someone could be so naive, but Morrison's performance is good enough that his move from joy, through confusion to disgust is, just about, believable. The supporting cast are superb. Bill Henderson and Eileen MCallum as John's Mum and Dad are torn between knowing of the dangers that lie ahead and pride that their son 'believes' in something. His Dad in particular is scathing about Scotland's 'divisions', and he is one of the few voices of reason in the play. Ken Hutchison (who some may remember from Murphy's Mob) is the band leader who is supposed to be the reliable man in charge, but whose hatred is never far from the surface, and there are cameos from Phil McCall, Jake Darcy, Terry Neason and James Walsh.

But it is the footage of the walk and those who are in and around it that stays with you, particularly in Kelvin Grove Park. Here's a clip, although you can watch the whole thing on You Tube. This is after the march has ended and John is drinking with his pal Paddy, who just happens to be Billy Connolly:

At a time when the subject of sectarianism in Scottish society is under heavy scrutiny once more it is timely to remember Just Another Saturday. Glasgow in particular is a very different city these days, but here is something that endures and McDougall is canny enough not to simply dismiss and condemn, although he certainly condemns, but to look behind the scenes to try and understand the attraction of the Orange Walk to so many. The result is one of the most powerful, and controversial, dramas ever to come out of Scotland, one which is subtler than it first appears. This is not simply a one-sided argument, although no doubt some will see it that way. No matter your beliefs I would urge you to watch it, although there are times when you'll want to look away, and when you do feel like that, remember that those drums are still being played.

September Song: The Best Music of the Last Month...

2011-09-29T16:43:00.001+01:00

It's time for the month in music, a selection of the stuff wot I have been listening to over the last four weeks.

First off is a tune from New Zealander Jeremy Mason, a man whose set I just caught the end of when he supported Miss the Occupier and Popup earlier in the year. He has just released a new EP called You'll Never Know Anything and it's rather lovely, reminding me of Tom Mcrae as it juxtaposes dark imagery with gentle vocals and minimalist acoustics. Fom the EP this is Fly Along with Ghosts:

Fly Along With The Ghosts by Jeremy Mason

Next is Laki Mera (who you can see on TV above). They have had their song Crater remixed by the mighty Mogwai and it is understated and quite delicious. Have a taste for yourself:

Laki Mera - Crater (Mogwai Remix) by Just Music label

Regular readers will know how much I loved the Mummy Short Arms single Cigarette Smuggling (it's still my song of the year so far in case you're interested) so it was with great anticipation that I clicked on to listen to his new(ish) song Change. It's gloriously nuts, with a bit of Beefheart and a splash of Frank Black, and I have the feeling that we are witnessing someone a wee bit special. It won't be for everyone, but then who would want that? I can't wait for a full album, but as long as they keep releasing songs I'll keep telling you about them. This is Change:

MUMMY SHORT ARMS - Change by Flowers In The Dustbin

I finally got round to listening to The Fruit Tree Foundation album First Edition. As I'm sure many of you know, this album is a collection of songs which were recorded to raise awareness of the work of The Mental Health Foundation. Those involved include Emma Pollock, James Yorkston, James Graham, Scott Hutchison, Karine Polwart and Alasdair Roberts amongst others. A line-up that speaks for itself. Here is Favourite Son:

Finally, I mentioned last month that This Silent Forest were half way through undertakinga song a day over a 30 day period, something they acheived in some style. You can see the fruits of their labour by going to their You Tube Channel but they have a new single out called The Fight. Yes it's folky, and yes, there is a lot of that about, but This Silent Forest play with a panache that few can match and remind me of one of my favourite bands Explosions in the Sky. Not so much post rock but post folk (have I said this before? If so it's worth repeating). But don't take my word for it, this is The Fight:

That's all for this month, so, as Kasey Casem used to implore, "Keep your feet on the ground, and keep reaching for the stars".

Iain Banks' Fiction Factory: The Third Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-09-27T10:23:00.001+01:00

In the third Scots Whay Hae! podcast we work our way through the life and work of Iain (M) Banks. The focus is mainly on his mainstream, for want of a better word, novels but we have Alex Scroggie on the phone to help us contextualise this work with his science fiction. Many of you may feel that we do not deal with the (M) material as we should, but, as the running time ends up well over an hour and fifteen minutes, well time, and a lack of knowledge, was against us.

As usual we would love to hear your thoughts on what we have to say, even if it is only to tell us that we are peddling mince, but I hope you'll find it interesting. You can listen to the podcast, and subscribe to it, at Scots Whay Hae! podcast at itunes or Scots Whay Hae! podcast by RSS.

The next podcast should be the long promised rammy where Chris and Ali are joined by Ronnie Young to come up with the top five Scottish novels of all time. Feel free to get your choices and heckles in early, and again they may get a mention.

In the meantime, here is the edition of Indelible Ink which looked at Iain Banks' debut novel, the cult classic The Wasp Factory, and which first appeared over at Dear Scotland:

Iain Banks’ ‘The Wasp Factory’
by Alistair Braidwood

Sometimes a writer comes along who is difficult to categorise, who doesn’t fit easily into any genre. Iain Banks is one such writer. Of course as Iain M. Banks, his other writing title, he is an out and out sci-fi novelist, but even that isn’t as clear cut as it at first appears.
He is a writer who loves to confuse and confound and I think it will please him to be so hard to pin down. He is, to use the title of one of his ‘M’ novels, ‘The Player of Games’. For Banks, life is an absurd game that we are all forced to partake in, a compelling puzzle that may have no solution, and this is reflected in his fiction.

This playfulness was obvious right from the beginning. When his debut ‘The Wasp Factory’ was published in 1984 it received as many brickbats as it did plaudits and Banks, in conjunction with his publishers, decided to include a selection of both to preface and advertise the book presumably in the belief that all publicity would be good publicity. Here’s just one of those critiques that show the strength of feeling the novel provoked:

‘As a piece of writing, The Wasp Factory soars to the level of mediocrity. Maybe the crassly explicit language, the obscenity of the plot, were thought to strike an agreeably avant-garde note. Perhaps it is all a joke, meant to fool literary London into respect for rubbish.’ The Times.

Such a view was by no means unusual. It’s difficult to think of another novel which split reviewers so dramatically. Perhaps there is a case for Brett Easton Ellis’s ‘American Psycho’, but there is much more substance to Banks’ novel and those critics should have been able to see past the gothic and gore and understand the philosophical and social commentary that runs through the book. Banks deals with questions of family, gender nature versus nurture and determinism versus free will. What some dismissed as a sensationalist novel was actually very serious indeed, and this mix between the sensational and the serious set the template for all his fiction.

That’s not to say that it is an easy read. There is one scene in particular, set in a hospital morgue, which is almost unreadable and can make you feel ill long after the page has passed. In many ways Banks is a writer of excess be it sexual, violent or horrific. In the novels that followed there is S&M, torture, expensive car habits and expensive drug habits. Banks uses excessive behaviour to sidetrack his heroes, (or heroines; his female characters are almost always stronger than their male counterparts) from their quest to be better, more enlightened, people. His protagonists are all on personal journeys, and along the way they must put aside the more base pleasures to follow their paths. This quote from the end of ‘The Wasp Factory’ backs up this idea of a personal quest: ‘Our destination is the same in the end, but our journey – part chosen, part determined – is different for us all’. One of Banks’ central themes is ‘you might not be able to save the world, but you can try by beginning with yourself’.

This is a difficult book to discuss in the usual fashion. Normally when I talk about a novel I would mention the actual text and plot but ‘The Wasp Factory’ contains a spectacular twist which I worry I’ll spoil by talking specifics. I can say that it is about an unusual family, the Cauldhames’ who live on a small Scottish island and that ‘The Wasp Factory’ of the title is a device built with the specific purpose to torture and kill wasps while trying to predict the future. The rest I’ll let you discover for yourself. If this seems odd then you’ll have to read the book to understand why. In a way this is the ‘The Usual Suspects’ or ‘The Sixth Sense’ of Scottish novels. Like those films the twist at the end of ‘The Wasp Factory’ is not the key to enjoying the book, but it does force you to reassess what you have just read. It’s no exaggeration to say that when I read it for the first time I went back and started again to see how many clues I could find. I still read the last chapter if I have a spare 15 mins as it is an incredible piece of writing. ‘The Wasp Factory’ was Banks’ first literary puzzle.

But you would be mistaken in thinking that he is simply making mischief. His games and puzzles only barely hide his anger, and sometimes fail to altogether. His novels have varying levels of anger driving them, from the comparably mild mannered ‘Walking on Glass’ to ‘Complicity’ which is seething with rage. Often there is a passage which is an out and out rant against a specific political or social problem. I often wonder if these passages are the sparks that precede the writing of the novels. They then become the vehicle that carries his views, and the characters become the mouthpiece, and sometimes avenging angels, of this apparently mild mannered man. In this sense the mainstream novels are as much fantasies as any of his sci-fi output.
Banks’ is a writer who embraces the new. His last novel ‘Transition’ was serialised as a free podcast in an attempt to reach a new audience and he was never content with just writing fiction. His book on whisky ‘Raw Spirit’ is one part travelogue to two parts social commentary. He also took part in a very short series, the Songbook Series, which had novelists compiling CD’s of their favourite music. (Hunter S. Thompson, Clive Barker and Robert Crumb also partook in the venture) Here’s one of Banks’ better choices. This is Richard Thompson with ‘1952 Vincent Black Lightning’:

Iain Banks is one of Scotland’s most successful novelists, but I think he is also the most under appreciated. The more sensational aspects of his writing seem to overshadow the serious moral, social and political debates that are to be had, and that is a great shame. Partly this is because he doesn’t appear to take himself overly seriously, as any one who’s ever tried to get a straight answer out of him will testify, but I think that is a front. You only have to read the novels to understand that this is a man who takes the business of writing, and of living, very seriously indeed. And that’s how it should be. These days we want writers to tell us what it all means, but why should they? It’s all in the book, as they used to say. Focus on the writing not the writer.

In very different way Iain Banks is as much of a social commentator as James Kelman. Both write to bring attention to perceived injustices in the world, and attempt to move the reader into action or at least empathy. If you’ve avoided Banks because you thought he was ‘fantasy’ or ‘sci-fi’ then I would ask you to reconsider. Just because a writer can spin a good yarn doesn’t mean that they’re not important and worthwhile, something we often seem to forget. Iain Banks; ‘he means it, man’.

Alistair

Van the Man: The Poetry of Ryan Van Winkle...

2011-09-26T16:44:00.000+01:00

I'm trying to educate myself in the ways of contemporary Scottish poetry as it has been a hole in my cultural knowledge. When it came to poetry I didn't know much but I knew what I liked, and that would see me returning to old friends and favourites such as Edwin Morgan, Liz Lochhead, Tom Leonard and Don Patterson, but I have been determined to remedy this. The recent anthology of Scottish Islands poetry, These Islands We Sing (see This Island Earth...) is a fantastic collection which includes many poets who I had never before read, and I have also been familiarising myself with the work of Jackie Kay (whose novel Trumpet is a must read), Robin Robertson, Dilys Rose, John Burnside and Ron Butlin on the recommendation of my Scottish poetry guru Roz Davies. As far as tasks go this has been one of the more pleasant and enriching, and there will be a Scots Whay Hae! Scottish poetry podcast in the near future to discuss these poets and more.

One name which has been at the forefront of Scottish poetry over the last year or so is Ryan Van Winkle. He's the Reader in Residence at The Scottish Poetry Library, although I believe he's on sabbatical at the moment, but you can still listen, and subscribe, to his poetry podcasts. I first came across his work when his poem 'One Year the Door Will Open' was the opening piece in The Year of Open Doors collection of poetry and prose and I've finally got round to reading his collection from last year, Tomorrow, We Will Live Here. Van Winkle is an American and this collection is an evocative, sensual, and at times cinematic journey through place and past. Here's an example from the poem 'Hunter Boys & Girls at the Stream':

The boy watches from the muscled hill.
All around is green but the water cuts dark.
The girls are deer grazing, smoking long cigarettes.
They have not shaved for him, the hills, the water.
On their mouths is the taste of mint, he is sure
the cigarettes have been stolen from Mother.

This is a scene which could be directed by Peter Bogdanovich or Robert Altman, and many of his poems place you in scenes which non-Americans will only recognise from afar. But, like Springsteen, Van Winkle sets a broad scene before focusing on individuals' lives and loves, and how place, whether natural or man-made, effects those that inhabit. The cover seems like a nod to Grant Wood's famous painting 'American Gothic', although in this case the couple are looking back into the distance rather than facing front. For anyone with an interest in American culture (and surely that must be everyone to a degree) this collection can only improve your understanding and strengthen those bonds.

Other highlights are 'Necessary Astronomy', 'Bluegrass', 'Open the Connections, She Says' and the collection of verse that make up 'Unfinished Rooms'. The poems have an understanding of nature that reminds me of Lewis Grassic Gibbon, and the poet I am most in mind of is Ted Hughes. Like all of the above there is an ache for times past. I'm sure there are more apposite comparisons, but you have to admit that Springsteen, Grassic Gibbon and Hughes would be a dinner party to behold. There'd be a hell of a fight for the last piece of pudding.

I digress. Here is Van Winkle talking about Tomorrow, We Will Live Here followed by some of his words put to music in collaboration with Ragland:

You can find all about Ryan Van Winkle by going to his excellent website ryanvanwinkle.com where there is lots to explore, but I would suggest engaging with his poetry the old fashioned way, in the form of a paperback which you can buy at Amazon, the The Scots Whay Hae! Local Shop and all good bookshops.

He is also part of The Forest collective whose website you should really take a look at.

Looking at the Stars: In Praise of Gutter Magazine...

2011-09-13T12:21:00.001+01:00

You probably already know that Gutter literary magazine is currently the benchmark for collections of new literature and reviews, but I feel I have to point everyone in the direction of the current edition. The quality of the writing between those green covers is reassuringly, and at times breathtakingly, high. For those of you who don't know, Gutter is a collection of fiction, poetry and reviews, and you are guaranteed a well balanced, engaging and entertaining read.

Gutter/05 features great short stories from, amongst others, Eleanor Thom, Kirsty Logan, Anneliese Mackintosh, Anna Stewart, Craig Lamont, Natasha Soobramanien and Allan Wilson, and there are excerpts from yet to be published novels including Rodge Glass's Bring Me the Head of Ryan Giggs, Tracey Emmerson's The Trees Aren't Sad So Why Am I? and Toni Davidson's Beat Versus Benoit (which sent me back to his terrific debut novel Scar Culture). Add in poetry from Ryan Van Winkle, Dilys Rose, Jim Carruth, Brian Johnstone, Rizwan Ahktar and Andrew C. Ferguson as well as 'GAP', one of Ewan Morrison's short stories from his soon to be published short story collection Tales From the Mall (see Talking Malls: An Interview with Ewan Morrison), a translation of Lidija Simkute by Kevin MacNeil, and reviews of Alan Bissett's Pack Men, Andrew Raymond Drennan's The Immaculate Heart, Zoe Strachan's Ever Fallen In Love and Iain M. Banks' Surface Detail, and you have a publication that those of us who love reading should find indispensable. It reflects a healthy national literature with a real breadth of voices and cultures represented, something that has not always been the case.

You can find more about Gutter by going to guttermag including how to subscribe. If you want to get your hands on Gutter/05 today you can find copies in the Sauchiehall St Waterstones and hopefully many more discerning venues.

While I'm promoting new Scottish writing and where to find it, August also saw the launch of the 29th edition of New Writing Scotland: The Flight of the Turtle. Co-edited by Carl MacDougall and Alan Bissett this thorough collection brings together different generations of practitioners of poetry and prose in various genres. Names such as Valerie Gillies, David Manderson, Allan Radcliffe, Tracey S. Rosenberg (whose current novel The Girl in the Bunker comes highly recommended), Marshall Walker, Danni Glover, Dianne Hendry and Alex Gray. You'll also find some of the writers who appear in Gutter, but the fact there is very little crossover also speaks well for contemporary Scottish writing.

You can learn more about New Writing Scotland, and the other publications that you can purchase from the ASLS, by going to New Writing Scotland/ASLS . You'll find they cater for most tastes, including back issues of NWS.

These collections show once more that Scottish writing, or writing with a Scottish context if you prefer, is constantly changing and evolving, which is what any healthy culture should be doing. Trying to define what makes a writer or a work Scottish or not surely has become as difficult as wrestling an octopus in a bath of lard, and just as pointless. To learn more about ourselves and our culture it is always important to engage with what is on offer around us; and what is on offer will not have fixed meaning. It will always effect different people in different ways.

There is a painting above the Val D'oro Cafe in Glasgow, two minutes from my door. It depicts Jesus crucified on the cross, at Glasgow Cross, and has a cast which features local residents. Every time I pass it I smile and think, perhaps a little less each time, about what it depicts. There is a local pride in the painting, one that apparently crosses religious divisions if a recent vox pop on Radio Four's Lives in a Landscape, aired last year, is to be believed. But when people come across it by accident, whether from Scotland or overseas, they will make their own assumptions and have their own responses to it.

This is how it should be with all art forms. They should inform those who recognise the signs and symbolism used, but it should also have an international interest that has significance beyond the local. Scottish literature has been accused of being insular and preoccupied with the local and national. This is disingenuous as most writers deal with what they have experienced, but those experiences, at least in the best writing, will have universal appeal. Having just discussed Tom Leonard's 'The 6 O'Clock News' with some students from the USA I can tell you that they engaged with the poem completely, not only understanding Leonard's language, but the central arguments he makes. If you're not aware of the poem then here's a link to Tom Leonard reading it:

Tom Leonard 'The 6 O'Clock News'

The American students cared not a jot if this was 'proper' language or not. They also brought their own experiences concerning dialect and language, and the assumptions that accompany them, to the discussion. Some people are so concerned about what is and is not Scots, or if the language used is 'valid', that we forget to take each piece of work on individual merit. They are so concerned over questions of inclusion and belonging that they forget to engage with the work itself, and this is when whole areas of writing; for instance detective fiction, science-fiction, Gaelic writing, urban realism, etc, can be written off without proper engagement with the respective stories or poems. Writing is a conversation between writer and reader, one where, if the writer is successful, both will come away knowing more about the other and themselves. Where those writers and readers come from, and who or what is being written about, is secondary to the success of that conversation.

In case you missed it, here is a link to The Guardian Book Podcast where there was an interesting debate about Scottish literature:

The Guardian Scottish Books Podcast

The most insightful aspect of the discussion asks the question; 'Are writers attempting to fulfil expectations of what a Scottish literature should be?'. The argument behind such a question is that this will produce, and perhaps already has, a reductive and narrow national literature. The question asks us to consider what is required by publishers, funding bodies, critics, and. more importantly, the wider readership and if writers have to fulfil these requirements to survive. What journals such as Gutter and New Writing Scotland prove is that there are plenty of individuals prepared to break out of such apparent cultural and commercial constraints. Despite what some people seem to suggest, contemporary Scottish writing, from the well kent to the never before published, has a strong pulse.

You Have Been Watching...Come Closer

2011-09-08T20:20:00.002+01:00

ThisSaturday, the 10th of September, there is the Glasgow Première of ComeCloser at the GFT. The film is the début feature from Berlin GoldenBear-winning director Peter Mackie Burns, and it is a documentary which followsseveral different characters in Glasgowas they go about their everyday lives. Filmed over a two-year period ComeCloser allows the audience intimate access to individuals whose livesare linked by the city. It is about change, the constant flux that happens inthose individuals' lives as they interact with each other and the places theyinhabit, and the relationships that are built up through family andfriendship.

Accompanied by the music of Sigur Ros, the filmis a series of snapshots, some inter-connected, some which stand-alone. It isoften unbearably poignant and moving, but there are also scenes wherehumour is found, some of which is dark, and even inappropriate, and this addsto the uncomfortable viewing experience which the director is obviously aimingfor. Because Mackie Burns eschews the normal narrative structure of film theaudience is never guided as to what to think, and as a result they are neversure what their reaction should be. This results in a work which manages todepict the motives, emotions, triumphs and failures that accompany everydaypeople’s lives.

The city becomesintegral part of the story. We are taken to times and places that arerarely represented on screen and there is a raw beauty that matches the storiestold. Glasgowgives context to these tales, but is a significant part of the content as well.Rarely has an urban landscape been shot with such understanding. Admittedinfluences include the realist photography of Nan Goldin and William Eggleston,and the films of Abbas Kiarostami, leading to the striking style of the film.By experimenting with portraiture, narrative and the formal conventions offilm, Peter Mackie Burns has created a work which gives theaudience a visceral, at times awkward, but ultimately unforgettable experience.You won't leave Come Closer at the cinema door. Here's the trailer:

Come Closer Trailer from Autonomi on Vimeo.

The film is being screened in tribute to the late Bert Eeles who as well as being the editor was a close friend to everyone involved. Having met Bert on several occasions I must say that you would have to travel far to meet as humble, entertaining and personable a man as Bert.

To book your tickets for Saturday go to Come Closer/GFT. The film begins at 3.30pm and there is a Q&A session that follows.

To learn all about Come Closer and those who made it go to comecloserfilm.

Only A Game: A Review of Alan Bissett's Pack Men...

2011-09-04T22:01:00.001+01:00

In 1984 doubleglazing company CR Smith became the first company to sponsor Glasgow's Old Firm, openly admitting that they would only sponsor both, or neither. They believed, rightly, that if you chose to sponsor either Rangers or Celtic then hundreds ofthousands of football fans would go out of their way not to buy yourproduct. When McEwans Lager sponsored Rangers in the late 1980s and the 1990s I was workingin bars in Glasgow and even some Rangers fans would refer to thebeer as 'Hun juice'. Celtic fans, and, indeed, any fans who did notsupport Rangers, would avoid it. Since then all sponsorship deals have included both teams.

I mention all of this to try and putinto context how brave Alan Bissett has been in setting his latestnovel Pack Men in Manchester on the 14th May 2008 when thousands of Rangersfans descended from Scotland to take over the city which was hostingthe UEFA Cup Final. Considering the large part football,particularly the Old Firm and all the sectarian baggage thataccompanies them, plays in many Scottish lives it is perhaps surprising that not more writers have dealt with the subject (Des Dillon and Alan Spence are notable exceptions). But then consider the sponsorship example. Not only does Bissett risk alienating non-Rangers fans (the cover, as you can see, has aUnion Jack on it) but it was a day which is widely consideredto be one which brought great shame on that club and those supporters who tore Manchester anew one. Those with Gers sympathies may not want to be reminded ofthat particular event.

But if people are fickle enough to let such things matter then hell mend them as Pack Men is not about football at all. It is about men and why the concept of 'the gang' seems to mean so much to so many of them. It examines the idea which was exemplified in Trainspotting when Franco Begbie's outrageous behaviour is continually excused with the statement 'He's a mate', as if that needs no other explanation. Bissett's book is a return to the characters of his début novel Boyracers, and has Alvin, Frannie, Dolby and Dolby's son Jack making the trip to Manchester with a group of fellow fans. The central character is once again Alvin, and it is clear from early on that he is way out of his comfort zone and that those bonds formed in early years are going to be sorely tested. Even in Boyracers Alvin was the outsider of the gang, being younger than the others and destined for further education. This gap has grown over the years, and his relationship with Frannie in particular is unbearably tense. This is not a comfortable read at times as Bissett captures the feeling that violence could erupt at any moment, either between individuals or on mass. The songs which are sung on the bus and the casual sectarian banter will be familiar to many readers brought up in Scotland, particularly in the West, and Alvin's dilemma whether to speak against it, which can only end badly, or keep schtum is a common one. It's all very well to believe that for evil to triumph all that is necessary is for good men to do nothing, but arguing that point of view to a bus full of devout football fans is a dangerous strategy at best, and Bissett is aware that the problem of sectarianism is more complex than simple good versus evil. He could easily have gone straight to the usual default setting of simple condemnation of such songs and those who sing them, but instead examines the attitudes behind the words, and just how they are ingrained in the first place.

It is not only sectarianism that Bissett addresses in Pack Men. There is also that other thorny question of class, and particularly the idea of moving between classes, something that is intrinsically entangled with the notion of identity in Scotland. We learn, through a series of flashbacks, that Alvin eagerly embraced the middle-class world of university life, and lost meaningful contact with the other Boyracers. We see Alvin educated in many aspects of life, and emerging unsure as to where he is supposed to 'belong'. His confusion is similar to that of Patrick Doyle in James Kelman's A Disaffection. At one point Doyle, another university graduate, reacts to his brother's accusation that he has become a 'middle-class wanker' with the thought 'Gavin was actually very out of order what he had said I mean you dont call your fucking young brother a middle-class wanker I mean fuck sake'. The inference here is that it is the accusation of being middle-class that burns Patrick rather than being a wanker. Such a move is seen as one of betrayal, of moving away from your 'ain folk', and is one which is at the heart of Pack Men.

As is the case with Kelman, it is Bissett's subtle use of language that is telling. In A Disaffection, the rather formal statement that 'Gavin was actually very out of order' conflicts with the final 'I mean fuck sake'. This linguistic struggle is symbolic and is something which Bissett understands. When Alvin is accused of talking 'like that Graham Spiers' you don't have to be familiar with Scottish sports writers to know that this is an accusation with many layers. As the novel progresses his language adapts to those who surround him, and these linguistic shifts exemplify his internal struggle. The comparison with Kelman (who also confronted the roots and results of sectarianism in his last novel Kieron Smith, boy) is deliberate as Bissett is perhaps the only other contemporary Scottish writer who successfully considers questions of class and the nature of Scottish masculinity in such an incisive and insightful manner. The main difference between the two is that Bissett embraces popular culture and references, something which I suspect Kelman would see as trivialising the political and social points that are being made. If he does feel this he is wrong, and it would be a mistake to think that Alan Bissett is anything other than deadly serious about what his writing addresses. What his prose does do is to reflect the interests and concerns of those he is writing about. Man cannot live by obsessing over political and social change alone. Sometimes we want to list our favourite Manchester bands, reference characters from Marvel comics, and, yes, obsess over football. Such matters don't necessarily prevent serious conversation, although all too often they do. Perhaps these days men no longer put away childish things as they were once supposed to, and this is a modern aspect of masculinity that is rarely examined. Pack Men reminds us that there is more to life than books you know.

Pack Men is a hugely impressive novel, one which gives much more than you are initially led to believe. This is down to Bissett's lightness of touch when dealing with important matters. There is a sense of humour and even handed-perspective which means that it is a more balanced novel than, considering what it deals with, you have any right to expect. Like Alvin, Bissett is trying to see the best in people, even when that best is well hidden. There are characters who initially feel like stereotypes but who prove to be complex and fascinating individuals. This is particularly true of the terrifying Cage and the effervescent Wee Wife, who is one of the best characters to feature in recent Scottish fiction. As the characterisations unfold there are surprises on almost every page as new and unlikely friendships are formed, and secrets revealed. Another positive aspect of the novel is that it deals with sex, and sexuality, in an intelligent and insightful manner, and it is heartening to see a Scottish writer discussing sex and the way it is an intrinsic and serious aspect of life, rather than using it to shock, titillate or humiliate.

I have to admit that I scrapped a full review of Pack Men and started anew on this one. This is because I made the mistake that I have warned everyone else of making, overly concentrating on the football/sectarian strand of the novel. It was only after reading the original back in full that I realised I was selling the novel short. Alan Bissett has once more held a mirror up to modern Scottish society and although what we see is sometimes cruel and ugly he seems to be suggesting that in the right light, after sober consideration about how we can make the most of what we have, we might just scrub up alright.

Pick of the Pops: The Best Sounds of August...

2011-09-01T11:56:00.001+01:00

Better late than never here is a selection of the best music to find it's way to Scots Whay Hae! in August. First off are Glasgow band Honey whose sound has been described as psychedelic pop and even shoegazing. Now in some corners these terms are seen as derisory, but not at Scots Whay Hae! where psychedelia, of the right kind, is positively embraced and the passing of Slowdive is still mourned. There is certainly a Cocteau Twins sensibility at work. The following track is Summertone from their EP Taste it And See, and there were a few early mornings where I had the windows open as the rain poured down outside and this was swimming around in my head:

Honey - Summertone by honeyband

Then there are This Silent Forest whose aim for August was to write, record and video a song a day for 30 days. Did they succeed? I don't know, they haven't told me. But from earlier in the year here they are with Falter Discover, and I think this is just gorgeous:

Prince Edward Island's album This Day is a Good Enough Day has accompanied me up, down and around the streets of Edinburgh over the past month, and I can't imagine a more suitable soundtrack. But don't take my word for it, have a wee listen for yer self:

Prince Edward Island - This day is a good enough day by Soundandvisionpr

The most anticipated album of the year, at least round our house, is The Other Half of Everything by ex De Rosa man Martin John Henry which is scheduled to arrive in October. I saw Henry supporting the Seventeenth Century last year and his new songs were of the quality that you immediately yearned to hear them again. Here's one of them; this is First Light:

Finally here are two track from bands signed to the fine label Flowers in the Dustbin, who are building one of the most impressive collection of acts around. First is Mushroom Cloud from Kick to Kill. This is one of those songs which slowly picks up pace until a heads down rush to the finish leaves you breathless:

KICK TO KILL - Mushroom Cloud by Flowers In The Dustbin

And here is another track from the great Mummy Short Arms, who I'm becoming increasingly enamoured with. This is Where's the Mortuary which has a pleasing Bad Seeds feel to it:

MUMMY SHORT ARMS - Where's The Mortuary? by Flowers In The Dustbin

That's it for August. That's it for summer. It may have been a washout but its had a hell of a soundtrack.

Make Mine a Double: Scots Whay Hae! Turns Two Today...

2011-08-25T23:41:00.001+01:00

Raise your glasses and let the sky be black with hats, it's Scots Whay Hae's birthday. Two years ago I started this blog for a couple of reasons. The first was pure pragmatism as I sought to find a way of keeping myself sane while I wrote my PhD thesis which had come to a grinding halt. However, the main reason was to write about those things I cared for with a passion. I'll admit that there may at times be a lack of objective critical analysis, but that was never really the point. I wanted to say 'I love this, and I think you will too'.

So with that in mind, and before I blow out the candles, I want to say a hearty 'Cheers!' to those who have supported me along the way, and continue to do so. People such as Andrew Collins who gave me some invaluable advice and who helped raise the profile of the site by allowing me to interview him. Other interviewees to thank include Richard Herring, Doug Johnstone, Alan Bissett, Kevin MacNeill, Ewan Morrison and, particularly, Mark Buckland and Rodge Glass, both of whom have been constant flag wavers for Scots Whay Hae! and what it attempts to do. Thanks also to those involved with the literary journal Valve, the fine folk who make up the team at Cargo Publishing and those lovely people at Birlinn and Polygon Books, especially Sarah Morrison and Vickki Reilly; all of whom have reassured me that the future of Scottish literature is in the hands of people who love it as much as I do. I also have to tip my hat to those bands and musicians (or those who represent them) who send me their music to listen to, much of which makes my life immeasurably more pleasant. Keep it coming.

Special thanks to the new additions to the Scots Whay Hae! family; Ian Gregson, Chris Ward, Kirsty Neary and, just signed on the dotted line, Ronnie Young, all of whom are involved in the new Scots Whay Hae! podcasts. We love recording them and I hope that you enjoy listening to them. If they take off as we hope then expect interviews and special guests and all sorts of other exciting hoopla to come your way soon. I also appreciate the support from The List, particularly Nicola Meighan who always exhibits exquisite taste and who shares my obsession with Restless Natives.

Then there are those who were early adopters, my fellow bloggers Aye Tunes, Peenko and, most of all, The Dear from over at Dear Scotland who gave me an ongoing monthly column on his site, known as Indelible Ink, where I could write at length about modern Scottish Literature without any constraints. Finding out that there were other single-minded obsessives out there made me realise I wasn't just shouting into a void, and their support gave me the confidence to believe that maybe my writing wasn't so bad after all. Dear Scotland also published my first article for a website that wasn't my own. It was basically a paper I had written on Gregory's Girl while at Uni, so I can admit it is a little dry, but to have someone else want to post my work meant a great deal. It also inspired my first piece of online criticism from the ubiquitous 'anonymous', who simply commented "What a prick". This remains my favourite reaction to anything I've written and is a pithy reminder that you can't please everyone, so first off try and please yourself.

And, of course, thanks to everyone who visits, reads and comments on Scots Whay Hae! I appreciate your support more than you can possibly know and I hope you keep on coming over, even if it's just for a chat. If I have forgotten to thank anyone who should have had a mention then please forgive me, absolutely pull me up on it, and my guilt will guarantee you a drink. Talking of which I'm off for a large one.

Slainte!

Alistair

For the first time on Scots Whay Hae! here is that Gregory's Girl piece. It's interesting to revisit and compare it with what appears on the site today. Have a read and you can see if old anonymous was right after all:

Modern Girls, Modern Boys: How Gregory’s Girl Promised a New Scotland

the nicest part is just before you taste it but that can’t go on forever! (1)

The post-punk era of the late seventies and early eighties in Scotland was a time of artistic confidence and success. In fiction Alasdair Gray had his magnus-opus Lanark published, while James Kelman was working on the short stories of Not, Not While the Giro that would bring him great acclaim and put him on the road to notoriety. Their fiction allowed Scotland to be seen as exhibiting a new imagination as they reported on their surroundings in a fresh and extremely individual way. But it was in music and film that this new Scotland was brought to the attention of a wider populace. 'The Sound of Young Scotland' was the name given to a vibrant music scene that it could be argued has never been matched. It was exemplified by Postcard Records whose rosta included bands such as Glasgow's Orange Juice, East Kilbride's Aztec Camera and from Edinburgh, Josef K and The Fire Engines. They continue to be an inspiration not only to contemporary musicians from Scotland, such as Belle and Sebastian, Franz Ferdinand and Popup, but bands worldwide. It was not only their music that was new. Here were musicians who wore there art-school roots and fey haircuts with pride and who were not afraid to let audiences know that they had read Kafka, Mailer and Nietzsche. Among those making waves were Altered Images and their singer, Claire Grogan, or C.P. Grogan as she was billed in her film and television work. She became the poster girl for 'Young Scotland' and Altered Images quickly became indie-darlings, with the single Dead Pop Stars featuring in John Peel's end of year Festive Fifty round up. They then went on to have considerable chart success with songs such as Happy Birthday, See Those Eyes and Dont Talk to Me About Love. But, for many people Claire Grogan will always be Susan, the winsome schoolgirl who uses her scheming friends to eventually become Gregory's Girl (1981).
…
Bill Forsyth's films showed the same confidence and disregard for previous stereotypes as the new music scene. Questions of gender and class were to the fore. In his first feature film That Sinking Feeling (1979) Forsyth showed a Glasgow gang who were not interested in casual violence, drink and sectarianism, but who were involved in a plan to get rid of knock-off sinks, part of which involved one-character dressing as a cleaning-lady. The film comments on unemployment and poverty, but also displayed a comedic lightness of touch that had been missing from previous Scottish dramas that had dealt with such topics. Gregory's Girl took the sensibility of Forsyth's first feature and bused it up the road to the then new town of Cumbernauld. By showing a part of Scotland that had never previously existed, Forsyth could present his characters without them being saddled with the cultural baggage that would have occurred had Gregory s Girl been set in other areas of the country. Forsyth's Cumbernauld is clean, new, desirable and safe. A place where teenagers could walk, and dance, in the park and the only worry was bumping into a lecherous school photographer and his mini-me assistant. These were images of a Scotland that would be unrecognisable to an outside audience, who were used to contrasting images of No Mean City and Brigadoon, but to those living in Scotland this was an area and time they could place, and here were characters who were recognisable, but not stereotypical.
…
The obvious way that Forsyth plays with traditional images of Scotland is in terms of gender. In Gregory s Girl the best footballer is Dorothy and the best cook is Steve. Traditionally football was men-only, and for a boy to take Home-Economics over Woodwork or Technical Drawing was at the time was almost unheard of. Times were changing, and it is to Forsyth's credit that he was aware of this change, but in the film there are other, more subtle, subversions of society's expectations. In his book British Cinema in the 1980s John Hill acknowledges this subversion:
…
“Adults behave like children, children behave like adults, boys behave like girls and girls behave like boys. While this has a certain link with the theme of escape characteristic of British social realism, it is also the case that the desire to escape is not, in this case, motivated by poverty or hardship but by a wish to break free of the fixities of conventional social roles and identities (and especially those of gender)”. (2)
….
Hill is right about such role reversals, and there are other stereotypes which are burst; stereotypes which highlight the preconceived social roles and identities that Forsyth wished to avoid. A film set in the West of Scotland that contains football footage, but never mentions religion or the Old Firm (Gregory has a Partick Thistle scarf on his wall), and which portrays teenagers who actually go to school, sober, and never mention drugs. While it would be foolish to pretend that such things are not a part of Scottish culture, or any European country's culture, to look at most representations of Scottish teenagers in the latter part of the 20th century you would think their lives were about nothing less. The storyline, one that deliberately echoes Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream, is really about the manipulation of the naïve boys by the smarter girls. But such manipulation is not as a result of Lolita-esque teasing or promises of sex. This is a more innocent picture of romance, one where confused boys are willing participants in the girls charming and amorous games. From Gregory's little sister Madeleine, to the Italian teacher who Gregory turns to in an afternoon of need, it is the women who are in control while letting the males believe the opposite. As Gregory states to disposed goalkeeper Andy while watching Dorothy play football: “Modern Girls, Modern Boys, it's tremendous”. (3)

Bill Forsyth went on to make Local Hero (1983) and Comfort and Joy (1984), both of which continued to present new visions of Scotland to their audience. Both are great films, but neither of them quite had the innocence and charm of Gregory's Girl. Innocence and charm are not words that usually spring to mind when talking about Scottish cinema but Forsyth proved that you dont need brutality, depravity or overt tartanry to make an impact. Gregory is right, it is terrific. What's really terrific is that Bill Forsyth had made a film for a new Scotland, one whose hope was to be destroyed as the unemployment of the 1980s began to kick in. But for a while it seemed so near, we could almost taste it.

Footnotes:
(1) Madeline to Gregory in a café talking about lime and ginger beer, Gregory's Girl (1981)
(2) John Hill, British Cinema in the 1980s (London: BFI, 1999) p 243
(3) Gregory speaks to Andy as he is supposed to be keeping goal for the school team, Gregory's Girl (1981)

Talking Malls: An Interview with Ewan Morrison...

2011-08-23T19:56:00.001+01:00

When you mention the name Ewan Morrison to some people you can almost see the cynicism and even ire rising to the surface. He has been categorised, often by those who will admit they have never actually read his work, as a professional controversialist who writes primarily about sex. This lazy thinking reflects a widely held view that, when it comes to Scottish culture, it is still the case that sex and all that goes with it should neither be seen, heard, read or, most of all, acknowledged artistically unless dealt with in either a sensational or sea-side postcard manner. Heaven forfend that we have a writer who takes such matters seriously. No one said this about John Updike, Henry Miller or Norman Mailer. Or perhaps they did, but they were wrong as well.

Despite such preconceptions Morrison is concerned with relationships rather than with any desire to titillate. He writes with an honesty about human communication and psychology that many of his male contemporaries find hard to manage. Just think how many modern Scottish novels there are which concern protagonists who are either isolated individuals or same sex ensembles, usually male, unless you are Alan Warner. Many of those are among my favourite novels, but there is a sense that boys stay in one corner while the girls are in the other. If there is sex in these novels it is often there to laugh at, or to belittle or humiliate, at least one of the characters involved. Often in Scottish fiction sex is used as a weapon, and a violent, destructive one at that, but for Morrison it is just one aspect, if an important and fascinating one, of what binds individuals who come together. This is not exploitation it's exploration.

Morrison's latest project is Tales from the Mall, which comes out next year with Cargo Publishing in every form available, and what I had read of it intrigued me so I asked him if he would answer a few questions. What follows is one of the most interesting interviews about the future of the writer and publishing that I have read in years:

SWH:Could you tell us about your project Talesfrom the Mall?

EM: Talesfrom the Mall, will, next year, be released as an interactive enhancedebook and app. It has nine short stories by myself (all named after retailoutlets – Gap, Borders etc), and about twenty anecdotes and confessions, toldto me by mall staff in the many malls I visited in Scotland and retold bymyself. It also has factual history sections on the growth and demise ofshopping malls globally and about how they work. Tales from the Mall also includes short films made by myself,colour collage images and audio. It’s a book of fragments and is an attempt todo something a bit like Walter Benjamin’s study of The Parisien Arcades – theforeparents of the mall - in his incomplete opus The Arcades Project. Of courseBenjamin wasn’t a writer of fiction, but a sociologist and a philosopher, butwhat he advocated in his writings was an abandonment of ‘the novel’ and areturn to the ‘folk tale’. Tales from the Mall is an attempt to tell the folk talesof the malls in my country ( what might seem an ironic proposition as manybelieve that malls are destroying our indigenous culture). As such the way Iwrite had to change, I’ve become more of a listener, than a maker. This shiftfeels important to me, the times we live in don’t need any more makers; there’salready too much a clamour of the me, me me - listening and recording feels more urgent. The stories I authoredmyself, were more about listening to reality than imposing a style that I couldcall ‘me’.

Previously, I’d been increasingly includingfactual elements in my novels – Menage had around thirty-five pages of‘historical analysis’ and I was developing a dissatisfaction with the limits of‘the novel - its ability to comment politically on the present. As a recentexample of this I think Jonathan Franzen’s Freedomis a terrible failure that really shows up the limits of the novel, a lotof which stem from its history, its model. All of the political points Franzentries to make in the novel, have had to be filtered through the characters, sothey become rants or preachy speeches, mere dialogue; at best they arestructural problems that characters have to deal with, but the novel does notsustain this. Freedom is ultimately astudy of some American characters who didsome interesting things in their otherwise generic American lives. We areasked to either like or dislike them and we filter the politics and sociologythrough our empathy with them and the minutiae of their limited choices- theyseem blind to their own times and the author cannot fill in the gaps to tell uswhy, because the characters keep getting in the way. It is a hugely ambitiousnovel that is also the end of that kind of novel in its towering failure. Thecontemporary novel just cannot achieve what non-fiction can achieve in givingus analysis and insight into our time. I site here, Dave Eggers abandonment ofthe novel in terms of the documentary books Zeitounand What is the What. And Also DavidFoster Wallace’s challenge to the novel in his essay E Unibus Plurum, urging for a more insightful and honest depictionof our present day and its politics. Foster Wallace and Franzen were buddiesand I see Foster Wallace’s suicide and Franzen’s failure in Freedom, as testament to the abandonmentof the challenge that they set themselves.

Theabove were all texts and ideas that I was worrying over as I wrote Tales from the Mall. I had, at the time,been more thrilled by the essays of MalcolmGladwell and Alain de Botton andwanted to do a really in depth research into what had previously for me beenonly a vague abstract background to my writing – namely consumerism. I wasalso frustrated that so few writers were willing to tackle consumerism head on.There being a notion that it was the terrain of the vulgar masses and not thesubject for ‘high’ literature. I grew up among the vulgar masses and was alsotroubled that the city I live in Glasgow,has passed from being a post industrial city, towards having the seventhbiggest retail avenue in the world – Buchanan Street. And this seemed also to have goneundocumented, perhaps because writers did not like that turn of historicalevents, the ideological conquest that it represents.

SoI set off to find out about how consumerism worked in Glasgow (as a microcosm of the new Globaleconomy), by doing interviews with shop workers, mall workers and consumers. Inthe back of my mind was this troubling and quite fatalistic quotation byJeanette Winterston: 'How many exciting novels could be written aboutthe sort of lives that most of us lead these days, anyway?’ In a way, she was right, novels are about epic journeys, the fightbetween good and evil over decades, the struggle within an individual - and consumerism in this light is just banal;as consumers we are barley even given the tools we require to be individuals.Consumerism doesn’t give us the material for novels or the material, hopes andlong term goals to lead lives that are worthy of writing novels about.

Butstill, consumerism must be the most important subject in the world. After 9/11, George Bush said ‘Do your duty asAmerican’s – go out and shop.’ Ithought, well to hell with the novel then, lets see how life is really lived inthe mall and if there are any wee stories worth telling within it. To my joy Ifound that there were many short stories of short struggles between individualsand the corporations that increasingly govern us. As one of the characters saysin one of the stories ‘That’s my day at work, it’s no fuckin’ War and Peace,but that’s that.’

SWH:Tales from the Mall sees you return tothe short story form. What are your thoughts on the merits of that as a form ofwriting and how it is received?

EM: I started out my life as a writer ofshort stories with The Last Book You Read and Other Stories back in 2004, and the form was a really joyous discoveryfor me after struggling for years to get feature films and TV projects off theground - always coming up against the same barrier with commissioning editors –that my writing was too dark or sociological or sexual or sceptical or notmainstream enough - could I just not lighten up and maybe adapt my self to theneeds of a mass audience? Those kinds of comments. I really dropped out at thatpoint and religiously studied every story by Raymond Carver, and also thecollection Black Tickets by JayneAnne Phillips. These books were revelatory and beautiful, and simple. The ethosof the short story, with Carver and Philips, as I saw it, was that you couldhave a flash of a moment, of true feeling and true expression, without worryingabout fitting it into a larger narrative, whether this be the proscribedstructural needs of the novel, or the much greater narrative that surrounds usall - of having a life story, a life project – to be a novelist, or a baker ora dentist or a CEO. I could write without worrying where it would lead ‘careerwise’. And that was very freeing for me. As a result that first collection ofstories is something I go back to again and again. I can’t bear the way thatmuch of it is written in many of the stories, but I look at it and say ‘howfree I was then’. It also hit a nerve with people and when I get an email outof the blue or someone comes up to me and asks me about a story I have toapologise and say ‘I’m sorry that was then, uhhm, I really don’t know what tosay about those stories now.’ But I am glad that they touched people.

Itreally annoys me though - the lowly status of the short story in the minds ofpublishers – they don’t sell as much as novels etc, etc. Can’t you write anovel on the same themes instead? etc, etc. I’ve been asked this a few times.But I would say that many of the most powerful writers in the 20^thcentury have created their best work in the form of the short story and thenovella. I sometime pick up Heart ofDarkness or The Outsider or TheFall and think - Christ, only a hundred pages but what an impact that hadon the world. The case of Camus is crucial. I picked up The Rebel last year and was stunned to find that, within it, therewas a prediction of, and a justification for, suicide bombing. Little more thana hundred pages, written in 1951.

I’ve really studied the short stories ofLorrie Moore over the last three years and Youare Not a Stranger Here, by Adam Haslett (Pulitzer Prize Finalist) was alsoa revelation. It’s embarrassing but I keep having revelations with shortstories and the same cannot be said for novels. In the long run, with thechanges in digital publishing, I think things will swing in favour of the shortstory, over the novel.

SWH:The interactive aspect of Tales from theMall is striking, with links to videos on your own YouTube channel,instructions how to use, and indeed abuse, a mall and, as part of the (G)hostCity series of audio recordings in Edinburghduring the Festival, you can download your story ‘Gravity Guy’. Do you see suchinteraction as important in the future of publishing, or is just something thatyou are interested in?

EM: I see interaction as the promise ofdialogue and debate and not as virtual gadget waving. A lot of digitaltechnology empties the content of what we take in, it just becomes the thrillof connection. Increasingly superficial. Jean Baudrillard was right twentyyears ago – ‘Communication forcommunications sake becomes the empty form with which technology seducesitself.’

Havingsaid that I have these skills from working a decade in Arts TV, making TVprogrammes on Alasdair Gray, James Kelman, AL Kennedy – sometimes makingdramatic adaptations of their readings for the TV, and it came to me that Icould do the same for my own writing, give it a go at least. So I stared making short films, and this tiedin very nicely with the stories I was hearing in my mall research. Rena the Cleaner is one that people seemto like and it was true story from a mall in Glasgow. I’ve ended up with about ten shortfilms now, and some animations, and I still have more to do. I thought thatincluding the films and the research in the ebook would make it feel morealive, like you were reading and watching my thinking and learning over aperiod of time.

I’mbringing Tales from the Mall out inlate Spring 2012 with Glasgowbased publisher Cargo. I’ve been impressed by their ability to combine digitalebook innovation with promoting the work of indigenous Scottish writers. Fromearly this year till the end of next year Cargo will have brought out two majortexts which other publishers may have not have seen the value in thegroundbreaking Moira Monologues byAlan Bissett (from his play) and the collected essays of Tom Leonard. This isan important, perhaps the most important thing that a Scottish publisher can dojust now - to connect the generations and create dialogue between them. This is‘interaction’. I feel there is a tendency among the older generation ofScottish writers, Kelman, Galloway, Grayto view the emerging generation as depoliticised, as a kind of threat to whatthey have achieved – indeed we have grown up under Thatcherism, privatisationand the legacy of every-man-for-himself and sometimes us younger writers dolook like little entrepreneurs with nothing to join us other than personalambition – but I hope and believe that connections, such as Cargo have madewith Leonard will pave the way for a real debate about the politics of Scottishliterature and actually get the generations talking to each other. We areultimately in the same boat and I’m happy to say that the new generation isbecoming increasingly politicised and drawing connections with the past. Thereare other moves afoot that are furthering this end, like Neu Reekie and the work of KevinWilliamson and Bella Caledonia andalso Gutter Magazine in Glasgow. Interaction inScottish literature would be for all of us writers to talk and fight and writedamning and offensive letters to each other like we used to in Chapman and Edinburgh Review, rather than all sitting at our solitary screens,clicking away.

SWH:Following on from this, you appeared at the Edinburgh Book Festival on the 20^thof August as part of The Guardian Debate entitled 'The End of Books' . Can yougive a brief recap for those of us who couldn’t be there as to your thoughts onthe matter? It’s a fascinating and evocative debate.

EM: In short I think that what we haveknown so far as publishing has around twenty-five years to continue it’sexistence and epublishing and digital ‘interaction’ will bring this about andto and end. Mainstream publishing willdie out when the baby boomers do, taking the paper book and probably the novelwith it, at least the literary novel. I didn’t realise this until I was askedto do the Guardian speech – on a subject no writer would want to believe in,let alone be the person chosen to represent the negative side of the argument.The facts though, after a month of research piled up and the future trajectoryof the book became clear to me. In a simple sense it will take a superhumaninter-generational effort to stop books going the same way as MP3s, andQuicktime movies. i.e in the future all these things will become free digital‘content’. And writers need to be paid. The future of publishing is alreadyhere, the old mainstream is quickly shrinking; bestsellers include annovelisation of the computer game Assassin’sCreed and the works of JamesPaterson, written by committee. Just check your local Asda. Writers in thefuture will have to work in the garret, we’ll return to the 19^thcentury. In fact, I would advocate that writers go even further back to beforethe printing press and make handcrafted editions of a 100 and sell them to theart market for prices like that commanded by Damien Hirst. Either that or tryto get a tie-in with a computer game.

SWH:Your novels, Swung, Distance and Ménage, seem to me to be books which are ripe for big screenadaptation. They remind me of some of my favourite ‘romantic’ films which areoften about unconventional relationships that turn out to be heartbreakinglypoignant. I’m thinking Harold and Maude,Secretary or Sex, Lies and Videotape. Have you been approached to have anyoneadapt one or more of your novels? And do you think that these are legitimatecomparisons?

EM: I’m flattered to hear that as all threeof these films have a big influence on me. In fact Menage is really Sex Lies andVideotape revisited. I remember weeping my head off when I saw that film.It looks really staged now and self consciously postmodern. That’s somethingI’ve had to struggle against in my own writing. But yeah, oddball characterswho try to make something of themselves in a world of prescribed values thatthey pretty much despise and which they have to ultimately accommodatethemselves to - pretty much sums up all that I’m about – both in terms of thethemes of my books and my own goddamn life. Thanks a bunch for exposing that!

Thegood news is that I’m working with Scottish director David Mackenzie (YoungAdam, Hallam Foe, Perfect Sense, You Instead) and we’re close to the finaldraft on Swung- the movie with his company Sigma films. We had a go at thescript three years ago and it floundered but I’ve learned a lot about scriptwriting since then and judging by the recent response we seem to be on theright track. We’re close to the point where the project has a life of it’s own,beyond me, and I really look forward to that. It will be really strange and wonderful to see this story aboutdysfunctional Scottish slackers trying to find themselves through swingingamongst the canon of Gregory’s Girland Whisky Galore, but in a way theyexplore similar themes. Swung is really just a comedy of manners about life in Glasgow in the age of theinternet.

SWH:Finally, what are you up to next?

EM: Right now I’m polishing up my nextnovel, which will be out with Jonathan Cape in July 2012. Ittook many years to write and I’m not sure if the industry will still be thereto support me (or anyone else for that matter) writing something like thisagain. Close Your Eyes is about awoman who, as a child, grew up in a hippy commune in the highlands in the 70s.I was the child of hippies but the book is based on three years of researchthat I did (on and off) by living in and visiting communes in the UK and Europe.The history of the highland commune is intercut with the story, in the present,about the protagonist’s search for her mother who vanished in 1982, and herinability to be a mother in the here and now. Like Tales from the Mall, it mixes fiction with social history, but theedges are completely blurred in a dream-like way. I’m indebted to JaniceGalloway’s The Trick is To Keep Breathing,Kelman’s How Late it was How Late and Ron Butlin’s The Sound of My Voice, for teaching me how to write in asubjective voice that still has some sociological insight imprinted within it.I think there’s something in that which is particularly Scottish. And indeed, I rarely read an English novelwritten after Dickens, preferring the Scottish, the Russian and the French(perhaps it is something to do with the Auld Alliance and the revolutionaryspirit). The new novel might surprisefolk who know my other books as there’s nothing psycho-sexual about it and verylittle to laugh about. But maybe I am becoming more serious and melancholy as Igrow older, maybe, at last, I’m becoming more Scottish, and actually quiteproud of it.

Scots Whay Hae! and Ewan Morrison 22/08/2011

Here's a Tale from the Mall for you to satisfy your curiosity:

You can find out more about Tales from the Mall and all things Ewan Morrison by going to ewanmorrison.com

His début collection of short stories Last Book You Read and Other Stories, a terrific collection, can now be purchased as an ebook from here LAST-BOOK-YOU-READ-ebook

Here is a short version of his argument from the Guardian debate at the Edinburgh Festival with lots of interesting links are-books-dead-ewan-morrison

All things Cargo can be found at cargopublishing.com

Edinburgh Preview No2...

2011-08-21T17:01:00.003+01:00

A little later than expected, this is the second Scots Whay Hae! Edinburgh preview and it concentrates on the comedy that increasingly dominates the Edinburgh Fringe.

I know that every year I say 'go and see Richard Herring' but the truth is that he is still one of the best stand-ups around and continues to be the first ticket I buy for Edinburgh. This year's show is What is Love, Anyway? takes the question asked in the early 1980s by electro pop poet Howard Jones and attempts to answer it. Herring is at the Udderbelly until the 28th of August, and also has a daily podcast recorded in front of an audience at The Stand. Although I miss his banter with Andrew Collins these are still worth a visit. If you can't make it along you can listen to them here Richard Herring's Daily Podcast. I was going to put up a video clip from What is Love, Anyway? but can't find anything of decent enough quality. So instead here is the aforementioned Mr Jones posing that very question which Herring seeks to examine:

Next up is The Boy with Tape on his Face, otherwise known as Sam Wills, and his comedy is in the fine tradition of Chaplin and Tatti in that it is silent, slapstick and simply funny. If Edinburgh is beginning to overload your senses there is something attractive about seeing a silent comedian, although be warned; there is a fair chance you'll be asked to get on stage, so if that is a fear then get there early and sit at the back. He is on at The Gilded Balloon until the 29th. Here's a clip:

Comedy is difficult to get right, but musical comedy is almost impossible. Think of how many good sketch shows were spoiled in the 80s and 90s because the cast thought that they had to have a musical number as if one of their influences was Richard Stillgoe. Exceptions to this rule were French and Saunders, although ther songs were normally pastiche, and Reeves and Mortimer. Now you can add duo Frisky and Mannish. They seem to have been everywhere this year, but that's no reason to ignore them here. They know their pop inside out and this immersion in the music and those who make it is the key to their show Pop Centre Plus which takes the piss while blowing an affectionate kiss. Here they are asking Questions:

Rich Fulcher is a face you'll probably know even if you can't quite place the name. He's best known for playing many characters in The Mighty Boosh including Bob Fossil and the lovely Eleanor, but he was also part of the short lived sketch show Snuff Box alongside Matt Berry. He's on at the Gilded Balloon Cheviot with his new show Tiny Acts of Rebellion until the 28th. Here's a collection of clips that will give you a taste of his work:

Finally the end of August sees Adam Buxton, Count Buckulize himself, arrive in Edinburgh for five nights of BUG at the Pleasance Courtyard. BUG is Buxton's regular night at the BFI in London where he plays his favourite songs, videos and anything else that tickles his fancy. Armed only with his trusty MacBook and a big screen he takes the audience on a tour through the weird and wonderful which Buxton obsesses over so we don't have to. Here he is de-constructing Grace Jones' Pull Up to the Bumper:

That's my personal recommendations, but I could have added Josie Long, Steve Hall (I should have added Steve Hall), Jerry Sadowitz, Henning Wehn, Rich Hall, Tim Key, The Fitzrovia Radio Hour and on, and on. There is never a shortage of good comedy at the Fringe. Something for every taste. But always remember, there's an awful lot of mince out there as well. I might take a punt on a band or a film, but never on comedy. I've learnt my lesson there.

Reel to Real Cacophony: It's the Second Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-08-20T14:06:00.000+01:00

The second Scots Whay Hae! podcast is now available for your listening pleasure. As promised it sees writer and expert in all things film Kirsty Neary join regulars Chris Ward and Ali Braidwood as they argue, fight, cry and eventually agree what the top five Scottish films of all time are, at least at 6pm on that particular Saturday afternoon.

The premise was simple. The three came armed with their lists of ten Scottish movies which they thought had a fighting chance of making it to the top. To find out which did, and if your own favourites feature, then go to Scots Whay Hae! podcast at itunes or Scots Whay Hae! podcast by RSS and listen to almost an hour of, mostly, good hearted banter. And if you strongly disagree with the choices then please let us know here at Scots Whay Hae!. Your choices may feature in a future podcast to see if anyone has changed their minds, or if you have changed them.

The next podcast will do the same for Scottish novels featuring yet another resident expert/close friend to help Chris and Ali come to their final decision. Feel free to get your choices and heckles in early, and again they may get a mention.

In the meantime, hope you enjoy our pod.

This Island Earth: A Review of These Islands, We Sing...

2011-08-18T00:13:00.004+01:00

"She turned into an island song

And died. They sing her ballad yet,

But all the simple verses tell

Is, Love and grief became her well."

An Island Tale, Edwin Muir.

The highlight of this year's Aye Write was hearing Kevin MacNeil read from the, as then yet to be published, anthology of Scottish Islands poetry These Islands, We Sing. The poems, and MacNeil's gentle delivery, worked beautifully to remind those attending that there are few things as compelling as great poetry.

The anthology has since been published by Polygon, and although it coincides with 'The Year of Scottish Island Culture', this is a collection for the ages and one which is long overdue. Many will be familiar with some of the names included, such as Sorley Maclean, Edwin Muir, Ian Crichton Smith and George Mackay Brown, all of whom have appeared in many previous collections of Scots' poetry as well as being well read and received in their own right. They are the heavyweights who made it, but many of them did so only after heading to the mainland before respect was duly given. What makes this anthology stand apart is that it is, as with the best literary collections, about inclusion rather than exclusion. As MacNeil, who has also edited the book, says in his introduction they wanted; 'a remit wide enough to bring in writing from any Scottish Island, but distinct enough not to include Highland or other mainland work.' Many may have thought that these islands alone could not justify a collection such as this. Think again. The title is a nod of the head to George Mackay Brown's autobiography For the Islands I Sing, and the press release has a quote from the poet which is worth repeating here:

"No man is an island, and all that we ever say or think or do
- however seemingly unremarkable - may yet set the whole

web of existence trembling and affect the living and the dead

and the unborn" - George Mackay Brown.

There are also contemporary voices who will be new to many, and who more than deserve their place on these pages. These include Edward Cummins, Angus Peter Campbell, Alison Flett, Barbara McGregor, Meg Bateman and Alex Cluness. If you are reading this assuming you know what sort of work and themes are waiting to greet you then place them to the side and be prepared to be challenged and surprised. Of course there are depictions of landscape, leaving, love and life apart, but there are also references to Iraq, the death of Music Hall, flea ridden hedgehogs and a shrinking Scotland. This is a literature and culture that not only has a past, but a vibrant present and healthy future.

If anyone needed convincing that poetry is superior in its mother tongue then compare the Shetland/Scots of Mark Ryan Smith's Unsindered with the English translation. Don't mistake me, the latter is a fine poem, however the original is so rich in language and imagery that you can taste and touch it. Other highlights include the magnificent Hamnavoe from the aforementioned George Mackay Brown, Sorley Maclean's The Island, Derick Thompson's At Callnish Stones, everything by Jen Hadfield and Aonghas MacNeacail's a proper schooling whose final lines:

history in my memories,

history in my memories.

poignantly sum up many of the poems contained within. And if there is a more concise summary of the passing of time than Roseanne Watt's Haiku then it has not reached me as yet. But there is so, so, much more to contemplate and consider. Even if you are familiar with the canons of those poets who once supped in the 'Poets Pub' there is a whole new world to discover and take to your hearts.

Kevin MacNeil states his belief that 'Scotland's island literature is ever evolving'. On this evidence, and when you consider the recent novels from the likes of Karin Altenberg, Robert Alan Jamieson, Richard Neath and not least MacNeil himself, this seems evidently true. I would suggest that this is yet further proof that Scottish literature is similarly in a state of evolution, and this celebration of the poetry from one of Scotland's most misunderstood and under-represented cultures adds further fuel to that apparently unstoppable fire.

"this island

breathing

in and out

like this"

Island Song, Alison Flett.

The Islands, We Sing can be bought from only the best bookstores and can be found at The Scots Whay Hae! Local Shop. I honestly can't recommend it enough.

Edinburgh Preview No1...

2011-08-14T12:23:00.003+01:00

It's time for the first of this year's Scots Whay Hae! Edinburgh Fringe previews. As usual Edinburgh is awash with big name comics, famous authors and actors off the telly, so I though that this preview should concentrate on some of those events which you could miss amongst all the celebrity spotting, general hoopla and incessant juggling.

First off we go to Charlotte Square to flag up a must attend for anyone serious about their comic books. Pat Mills and Rodge Glass meet up to talk War and Comics. Mills has been called 'the godfather of British comics', having worked on 2000AD, Judge Dredd, Nemesis the Warlock and Charley's War. Rodge Glass (see Dougie's War...) is best known for his novels and his biography of Alasdair Gray, but his first visit into the world of comic books has proven to be thought provoking and timely. Dougie's War tells the tale of Dougie Campbell, a young veteran of the war in Afghanistan who finds his return home nightmarish, and who can't leave the battle field behind. It will be fascinating to see what conclusions the two come up with about the role comic books and graphic novels have in dealing with the most serious of subjects. You can hear those conclusions at 12.30pm on the 28th August as part of the Book Festival.

You may have heard the name Withered Hand when it looked as though he would be barred from visiting the US for this year's South by South West, something which would have been Texas's loss. Whether on his own or with a full band he simply plays beautiful music simply, and sometimes you need nothing more. He is undoubtedly a man who is well thought of by his peers, the reaction to his Visa problems prove this, so if you can make it along to Queen's Hall on the 25th at 8pm you can find out why. Here he is performing Religious Songs:

You don't get much for free these days, at least not much that you'd actually want to view, but if you fancy something quiet yet subversive I would suggest you visit the National Library of Scotland's Banned Books exhibition (see Banned Book at the NLS). Books featured are as diverse as Harry Potter, Lady Chatterley's Lover, Spycatcher, Ulysses and the scripts from Father Ted. There is also the promise of 'What the butler saw' - a peepshow-type display of'censored' images from 'Fanny Hill'. So if you fancy a little filth with your festival experience this is without doubt the classiest way to go about it.

Some of the best theatre the Fringe has to offer has often proved itself elsewhere already. This is certainly true of Casablanca: The Gin Joint Cut which has already been hailed as a triumph for its run at Glasgow's Tron theatre and which you can catch in Edinburgh at The Pleasant Courtyard at 4.30pm until the 29th August. It has TV's Gavin Mitchell as Bogie as Rick, and has Jimmy Chisolm and Clare Waugh playing multiple roles. I love the original Casablanca but missed this when it was in Glasgow. This is something which I am going to rectify. In fact if I could only see one thing this year I suspect it would be Casablanca: The Gin Joint Cut . Here's the trailer:

If the thought of visiting Edinburgh during the Fringe brings you out in hives, here's something that you will be able to visit when the city becomes quiet once more. It's David Mach's Precious Light exhibition, a celebration of the 400th anniversary of the first King James Bible, and which is on at the City Art Centre, Market Street until the 16th October. I find Mach's work to be unpretentious, witty, thought provoking and entertaining and what more can you ask from an artist. He hasn't worked in Scotland for some time so it's exciting to have him back. For me he is as important as Peter Howson, Stephen Campbell and Jenny Saville, which is as good as it gets. Here is the man talking about The Devil, part of the exhibition:

And finally for something a wee bit different. Alma Mater is the name of Fish and Game's interactive film for one which you can partake in during the festival. You will find it at Venue 157, St George's West but you can read more about this fascinating project here Fish and Game's 'Alma Mater'. In the meantime here's a clip of Eilidh MacAskill explaining the concept to an apparently baffled David Sillito:

That's all for now. The next preview will appear later in the week and will concentrate on the laughs to be had at the Fringe this year.

You Have Been Watching...New Town Killers

2011-08-08T16:45:00.004+01:00

I've written previously about Richard Jobson with reference to his films Sixteen Years of Alcohol (see You Have Been Watching...16 Years of Alcohol) and A Woman in Winter (see You Have Been Watching...A Woman in Winter ). The former is an autobiographical tale of drink, violence and the redemptive powers of music and love, and the latter is one of the most interesting and stylish Scottish films of the last 10 years. But Jobson is not a man to limit himself to to one genre of film, or who is a slave to the art-house. Sometimes he simply wants to entertain. This is true of his rarely seen 2004 martial arts movie The Purifiers, but never more so than with his 2009 thriller New Town Killers.

You could call New Town Killers a cross between The Running Man (the Bachman/King novella rather than the Arnie movie) and Michael Haneke's 1997 film Funny Games, but put simply it is a chase movie through the streets of Edinburgh, as James Anthony Pearson, recently seen in Lip Service, is offered a life changing amount of money if he can survive 12 hours being hunted by twisted bankers Alastair MacKenzie and Dougray Scott. Jobson uses the city brilliantly as Pearson seeks out Edinburgh's darkest nooks and crannies to avoid his pursuers. There are some good performances here, in a movie which stays the right side of over the top. Pearson plays the desperate Sean, a young man who becomes the perfect target for the thrill seeking psychos Jamie and Alistair (MacKenzie and Scott respectively). I've mentioned before that I'm surprised that Alastair MacKenzie is not a bigger name, and there are also some nice supporting performances from Liz White and Charles Mnene. For you Whovian completists there is also a blink and you'll miss it appearance from Karen Gillan as 'Young Girl in the Bus Stop'.

Then there is the dilemma of Dougray Scott. I'm trying to think of a film where Scott really acts. Maybe I've never forgiven him for his terrible turn in Gregory's Two Girls (see You Have Been Watching...Gregory's Two Girls), although it would be beyond churlish to put the blame for that disaster solely on his shoulders, but it seems to me that his acting style consists almost wholly of squinting into the middle distance, with just the hint of a slight cast, and...then...talks...in...this...slow...drawl...that is...supposed...to denote..menace..., but sounds to me like he's being played at the wrong speed. Don't get me wrong, I can see the appeal of a dark, handsome, brooding presence, and when interviewed he seems like a lovely bloke, but it would be nice to see him branch out. Although having carved out a successful Hollywood career I'm sure he's bothered.

New Town Killers takes a little time to get going, but when it does it rattles along at a fair old lick, and is genuinely thrilling. It would have been easy for Jobson to follow the then popular torture porn genre, but although there are scenes which are not for the squeamish, he focuses on jumps and scares rather than an over reliance on claret. This is someone who understands the genre, and that is what you must remember about Jobson. This is a film fanatic. In that sense he is Scotland's Tarantino.

Here's the trailer followed by the video for the title track which Jobson co-wrote with Isa and the Filthy Tongues. He just can't give up control:

Next up for Jobbers is Helter Skelter, a thriller set in the Grampians, followed by The Somnambulists, a film which focuses on 15 real life testimonies of service men and women who were involved in the Iraq conflict. This pair of films sums the director up. He doesn't see the division between high and low culture that others seem to hold as important, he just wants to make films. And I, for one, am glad that he does.

Haud Yer Weesht: It's the First Scots Whay Hae! Podcast...

2011-08-03T23:24:00.004+01:00

They say good things come to those who wait, but so does the Scots Whay Hae! podcast. The first edition is now available for your listening pleasure, and you can subscribe at itunes or by RSS by clicking the links to the right of this post or even these ones right here:

Subscribe to Scots Whay Hae! at itunes

Subscribe to Scots Whay Hae! with RSS

What it's all about? Well it is going to be a collection of chats about the kind of things that Scots Whay Hae! has dealt with over the last two years. Forthcoming attractions include rammies about the top five Scottish films of all time, the top five Scottish novels of all time and, in an exciting and unexpected twist, the top five Scottish albums of all time.

Looking further ahead podcasts will have interviews with only the most special of guests, all of whom say they are willing to talk Scottish cultural gubbins for 40 minutes or more for a half a lager and some magic beans. The inaugral episode has Chris Ward and Alistair Braidwood picking their favourite films, books, TV programmes and music of the last 12 months and arguing the toss about it. Put simply, it's two men talking about the stuff they always talk about when they meet up, but this time with sound guru Ian Gregson recording it. I hope you'll like what we've done. If so come back in a few weeks time to see just how many Bill Forsyth films I've managed to sneek into the top five Scottish films.

Sound and Vision: The Best From the Inbox...

2011-07-31T23:27:00.000+01:00

Every now and then I like to round up the best music that finds its way to my ears, and the last week has seen missives from new faces and old (no offence to anyone). This roundup features Prince Edward Island, Luke Joyce's I Build Collapsible Mountains, the guitar genius who is RM Hubbard, A Band Called Quinn and The Seventeenth Century. That is a great line-up in any language and listening to their work together puts me in the best of moods.

First off is You Look Like You Need a Drink the new single from Prince Edward Island and which acts as a taster to their forthcoming album This Day is a Good Enough Day. There are suggestions of Ballboy and Arab Strap in their sound which I hope excites you as it does me:

Last year saw the release on Peenko records of A Month of Lost Memories the début EP by Luke Joyce, otherwise known as I Build Collapsible Mountains, and as many will know it was one of my favourite pieces of music of the year. Well he has been over to the States to garner even more acclaim and now he's back. His new album The Spectator and the Act is due in October, and, once I work out how to open the file he sent me with the album on it, I will write more fully about it (it really is a miracle that this blog makes it out). In the meantime here is the opening track Face of Thunder:

Last Wednesday saw the launch of the paperback version of The Year of Open Doors (see The Year of Open Doors) and as well as the impressive selection of writers and readers there was one RM Hubbert playing the most astonishing music. The man's work was new to me, but after getting a copy of his album First and Last I've been listening to little else since. It's a great introduction to his work but he really flies live. If you get the chance to see him I suggest you grab it eagerly. This is Frost and Fire:

Next is a song which you may already be familiar with but it is included here because the video has been selected for the Bornshorts Film Festival. It's a proper piece of old school horror and is a reminder that video, at its best, is as much an art form as any other. This is Wolf Cries Boy from the wonderful A Band Called Quinn, and the song can be found on their underrated album The Beggar's Opera. Don't have nightmares:

Finally there is the latest video from Scots Whay Hae! favourites The Seventeenth Century, one which captures the magic of their live shows. You can find it on their EP The Seventeenth Century (Part II). This is Banks of Home:

The Year of Open Doors: One Year On...

2011-07-26T20:36:00.002+01:00

Tomorrow night at 7pm at The Arches in Glasgow (Wed 27/7), there is the launch of the paperback edition of The Year of Open Doors. For those who don't know it is a collection of short stories by Scottish writers both well kent and new which was first published by Cargo last year. It became one of the most important, and inspirational, publications of recent times and seemed to not only capture the mood of contemporary Scottish literature, but help set it.

I wrote a review of the book for Indelible Ink, my monthly column on Scottish fiction that you can find ongoing over at Dear Scotland, in July last year and it's so satisfying to revisit the review and see not only that I was justified in my high opinion of the book, but also that I underestimated its impact. It's particularly pleasing that the inspirational nature that I hoped for The Year of Open Doors has come to pass as there is no doubt that others have been inspired by its existence to publish, and that so many of the contributors have gone on to do their best work in the last 12 months. I think it's worth reprinting that column here and now so that you can understand how strongly I felt, and hopefully it will inspire you to go and see some great writers and readers down The Arches tomorrow, or at least look to get your hands on a copy sooner rather than later. Spread the word. It's important that folk are aware when there is great writing out there and as those involved in The Year of Open Doors have shown, complacency is not an option:

Indelible Ink: Special Edition

‘The Year of Open Doors’

‘Novels are full of padding, they’re clearly objectionable’

Paul Reekie ‘Submission’

The above quote is one of my favourites and comes from the 1996 short story collection ‘Children of Albion Rovers’. It is the way I feel about many novels, and neatly sums up why I have such a love for the short story. There is no sense of writer’s fulfilling a word count, or just filling. Some of Scotland’s greatest writers’ best work has been in short story form. Ali Smith, Anne Donovan, A.L. Kennedy, Alasdair Gray and Agnes Owens all have one or more collections that are must reads, and that’s just the ‘A’s. I still insist that James Kelman’s best work is to be found in his short story collections, yet some readers appear to view them as if they are a ‘lesser’ form, something writers do to fill time in between novels. Those people are wrong.

‘The Year of Open Doors’ is a new short story collection from Cargo Publishing. It features writers with varying degrees of profile and publications and it follows in a fine tradition of collecting some of the best contemporary writers’ work in one place. The aforementioned Kelman, Gray and Owens found a larger audience through the 1985 collection ‘Lean Tales’, but the inspiration for this anthology appears to be ‘Children of Albion Rovers’, the 1996 book that brought together, amongst others, Alan Warner, Gordon Legge and Irvine Welsh. There have been various Scottish short story collections published over the years, most notably by University of Glasgow’s MLitt in Creative Writing and the New Scottish Writing anthologies. While these are always worthwhile they never seem to reach a wider audience. This is a situation that Cargo, a new and innovative independent publishing company, seem determined to change.

There are a few links with ‘Children of Albion Rovers’ that give clues as to that book’s influence. Irvine Welsh has written the foreword, and there is a contribution from his contemporary Duncan Maclean, who is the writer of ‘Blackden’, one of Scotland’s great lost novels, and ‘Bunker Man’, just one of Scotland’s great novels. He’s better known these days as a playwright so it is great to have him back writing prose. It’s like having one of your favourite bands release something new. But his importance to Scottish writing is greater than just fiction. He was central to the formation of Clocktower Press, which was the forerunner of Rebel Inc, publisher of ‘Trainspotting’ and, yes, ‘Children of Albion Rovers’. Many of the Scottish writers whose work has been discussed in ‘Indelible Ink’ may not have been heard of without McLean and his compatriots’ determination to publish and be damned. This is the spirit that drives ‘The Year of Open Doors’.

There are a few other well known writers involved. Alan Bissett, author of this month’s featured novel ‘Boyracers’, Kevin MacNeil who you may know from his 2005 novel ‘The Stornoway Way’, and Suhayl Saadi whose 2004 novel ‘Psychoraag’ will feature on these pages in the near future. But this anthology’s greatest strength lies in the lesser known contributors who make up the majority of the book. Names such as Jason Donald, Ryan Van Winkle, Anneliese Mackintosh, Kabka Kassabova and Daibhidh Martin will only be known to a few, but the discovery of the new is always exciting, and this is a collection of real quality throughout.

According to Rodge Glass, the editor of the collection, ‘The Year of Open Doors’ entrance policy was simple; if it’s good enough it’s going in. This has led to the most eclectic and representative collection of writing in a Scottish context, not just of recent times, but of any time. I’m not going to give you my favourites; I’ll leave it up to you to make up your own mind (although just thinking about Aidan Moffat’s story ‘The Donaldson Boy’ brightens my day. Yes, that Aidan Moffat). But every story here is worth reading and it is the range of this collection that is its greatest asset. It cuts across nationality, class, culture, gender and genre. This is a confidant and assured book, one which I hope and believe is an accurate reflection of the current mood in Scottish culture. Here’s Rodge Glass in discussion with Cargo’s Mark Buckland to explain the project further:

The role of independent publishers is increasingly important. I think that where the music industry has lead, publishing and literature will have to follow. Just as the major record companies realised that they could make money with little effort by repackaging acts that were already established, so the few bookshop chains that are left feel that they can do similar. In that sense Dan Brown is literature’s Phil Collins. No one comes out well from that comparison.

But new music survives and thrives. In fact there is more good music out there now than at any other time, and access to it has never been better. Short story anthologies remind me of the free compilation CD’s that come with music magazines, or record companies’ samplers. You can discover the new, become reacquainted with the more familiar, and perhaps only listen to some tracks once. They are important as a taster as to what is out there and there is always the chance that you’ll discover a new voice that makes a difference to your life. Such a chance is always worth taking.

This collection should be seen as an opportunity, an example and perhaps even a test case. If ‘The Year of Open Doors’ is a success then it is to be hoped that others will follow, that publishers will take chances on these writers and others, but also that it inspires writers to do it for themselves. There is an audience out there for new fiction, it is a matter of making that audience aware of where to find it. Marshall McLuhan’s famous claim that ‘the medium is the message’ has never been more relevant. This is something that those involved with ‘The Year of Open Doors’ understand. As well as the book there is an audiobook created in conjunction with Chemical Underground, podcasts, live events, video blogs, downloads and an attempt to form a real artistic community. But this is not just a one way relationship. Both writers and readers have to adapt and change to find each other. Buy two copies, and give one to someone you care for. There’s a lot at stake here.

You Have Been Watching...The Match

2011-07-25T19:41:00.003+01:00

I have to admit I have a soft spot for sports movies. Yes they are often formulaic, logically flawed and have endings which you can see coming from miles away, but Raging Bull, The Hustler, Chariots of Fire and even Slap Shot are among my favourite all time films. However, when such films go wrong they tend to do so spectacularly. A wee while ago I wrote about 2000's A Shot at Glory, (see You Have Been Watching...A Shot at Glory.) which starred Robert Duvall, Michael Keaton, current Glasgow Rangers' manager Ally McCoist and many of the Airdrie team of the same year. I suggested that, although there was some unintended entertainment to be had, this was was a contender for the title of 'the worst film ever made in Scotland'. Then, in an online conversation, someone mentioned The Match.

Released in 1999, The Match is a film that passed me by, which surprised me. It's set in Scotland, it's about football, and a quick look at the IMDB showed me that it promised performances from Ian Holm, Tom Sizemore, Pierce Brosnan and Scots Whay Hae! favourites Laura Fraser, James Cosmo, Gary Lewis, Bill Patterson and David Hayman. How could I have not heard about this film, even if it was straight to DVD? Further reading hinted at the reason. It also boasts in its cast the talents of Neil Morrisey, Max Beasley, Jonathan Watson (a great mimic, but no actor), Alan Shearer!! and Samantha Fox. Then there is the enigma who is Richard E.Grant.

Grant will always be known to film fans as 'Withnail', one of recent cinema's greatest comic/tragic creations, but his subsequent career has proven that this was a glorious fluke. Grant has managed to carve out a successful career despite the absence of anything approaching acting in his repertoire. To try and be fair he has been in somereal stinkers since Withnail and I, but even when given a decent script Rich is reliably terrible. Ithink he has missed his calling as his memoir With Nails: The Film Diaries of Richard E. Grant is hilariously catty and indiscreet. It is also very well written, recalling histime as Withnail, that spent with the roadshow that was Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula,when he was rubbing shoulders with Keanu, Winona, Sadie and Gary Oldman with old lady hair, and his time filming legendary turkey Hudson Hawk. If you haven't seenit, it is one of the most nuts films of all time. Bruce Willis playsthe titular Hawk, a catburglar who times his raids by singing oldshow tunes, Sandra Bernhard appears as a gangster's moll, the love interest is Andie MacDowell (need Isay more) and yet Mr Grant still manages to be worse than anyonearound. It's quite a talent. Still, the book's definitely worth a read.

I digress, but only toemphasise to you just how awful he is in The Match. It's not simply the accent, which is impossibly poor for someone who does this for a living, it's the whole performance. He pouts, flounces, rages, emotes and schemes like someone who has not only never done this before, but never considered what acting actually involves. If this was a one-off I would suggest that it was an attempt to sabotage the film but that would lend him far too much credit. When he is on-screen even the dogs in the street are laughing at him.

Not every performance in The Match is terrible though, in fact that's at the heart of the film's problem. It's a game of two halves. David O'Hara has a curious cameo as the mechanic in a flying helmet who proclaims, in the most deadpan manner, what excites him. Bill Patterson is as charismatic as ever and has a wonderful teacher/mentor relationship with Iain Robertson. Ian Holm is far too good for fare such as this and Tom Sizemore copes well with his character Buffalo, a heartbroken US serviceman who has never made it home. It's a role that could have been an awful stereotype but Sizemore ensures that never happens. In fact there is a lot of loss and sadness in the background of this film which could have taken things in a different and more interesting direction, but all subtlety is thrown aside as 'the match' approaches and every cliché of the genre is ticked along the way.

Here's the trailer, which is, in keeping with the film, ludicrous in that it gives the whole plot away, including the surprise ending. If The Match comes on the telly sometime it's worth a gander to see some great actors struggling to make sense out of what they are being asked to do, and some not so great just struggling. But since you are unlikely to watch the whole film (the things I do on your behalf) this tells you all you need to know:

The real shame about The Match is that there has got to be a great Scottish sports movie to be made (if you know of one then please tell me about it. Even a half decent one would be a start, and no, Gregory's Girl doesn't count.) Whether you like sport or not you have to admit that there are times when it brings out the best and worst in people, and the potential for successful drama is undoubtedly there.

Amazing Grace: A Review of Ali Smith's There but for the...

2011-07-19T16:17:00.004+01:00

There is no other writer whose new release I look forward to with the same anticipation as I do Ali Smith. For me it's like waiting for a new Will Oldham album or Coen Brothers' movie, the closer it gets the more excited I get as I know I'm going to be presented with something new yet of guaranteed quality. Smith's latest, There but for the, fulfils expectations while confounding others and makes me love her all the more.

Smith loves language, and plays with it with more style and ease than any other writer I can think off. The only Scottish contemporary who comes close is Kevin MacNeil. Names are never given without thought (there's middle-class dinner hosts Gen and Eric, and a teenage punk who mistakenly becomes known as Anna Key), phrases have double, or often triple meaning, and you are never far from an acknowledged pun all delivered with a self deprecating wink. Here's a short example:

"A conjunctiva is a[unreadable word] of the front of the eye, covering the external surfaceof the cornea and the inner side of the eyelid.

A conjuncture is a combination ofcircumstances, esp one leading to a crisis.

But but?

And and?

(So simple.)

Conjunctions.

And conjunctions?

(So simple.)

The way things connect."

But Smith's mastery of language is only half the story, she has a wonderful ability to create characters who stay with you after the last page has turned, and often manages to do so within only a few paragraphs. In There but for the the story may at first appear slight. A man goes to a dinner party at the home of people he doesn't know, then locks himself in one of their bedrooms never to emerge. From this premise Smith manages to present questions of class, politics, morality, social anxiety and the modern obsession with celebrity in a manner that never feels hectoring or patronising. The book reminds me of the best of Mike Leigh's work in that the story is told through the lives of people who are recognisable but never stereotypical, and some of whom are extraordinary.

This applies to two characters in particular. First there is the enigmatic and charismatic Miles, a man who is central to the story yet spends most of it absent except in others hearts and minds. He links all the lives of the other characters in a similar manner to Amber in Smith's earlier novel The Accidental, in that no one is sure just how he has brought them together. But the undoubted star of the show is Brooke Bayoude, a precocious young girl, inquisitive, open and whose intelligence often wrong foots the adults who come into contact with her, and at times makes them decidedly uncomfortable. In Smith's fiction, as with Bill Forsyth's films, children are seen and heard, and usually prove to be far more intuitive than the adults who they have to deal with.

If you love reading then you'll love There but for the. The only thing I can imagine that it could be criticised for is that it rather peters out at the end when many may be looking for a neater conclusion, but when I've spent time in the company of Smith and her characters such things don't bother me, in fact a neat endnig would have felt out of place in such a playful novel, a cop out which is not the Smith way. Instead she writes intelligently, cleverly and with a grace that means that she could never be accused of showing off. Like Brooke she is in thrall to the power of words, and also shares the youngster's love of puns, similes and allusion all of which can give the illusion that the story which unfolds is surreal, but that's because once more Ali Smith has managed to tell a story with more beauty, wit and understated skill than we are used to and have any right to expect.

As a wee bonus here is the song she worked on with The Trashcan Sinatras for The Ballad of the Books project. This is Half an Apple:

You can buy a copy of There but for the from the Scots Whay Hae's Local Shop, as well as all good bookshops.

Summer in the City: King Tut's Summer Nights...

2011-07-15T13:23:00.002+01:00

It's time once more for King Tut's Summer Nights and as always there is an eclectic and interesting line-up. 70 acts over a fortnight, four bands every night with the added bonus of an acoustic set in the bar, all for £6 a go. That's got to be a bargain. It kicked off last night with Sonny Marvello supported by The Dirty Demographic, Acutones and The Miss's and finishes on the 28th of July with The Ray Summers, Johnny and the Giros, Mass Consensus and Midnight Harlots. In between are some of Scots Whay Hae's favourite bands. You can check out the full line-up by going to kingtuts.co.uk/summernights where you can also download the free Summer Nights album. In the meantime here's a taste of just a few highlights:

First up is the Winter Tradition with Firelight:

They are on this Monday (18th) with Fatherson, Vukovi and personal favourites The Scottish Enlightenment all of which suggests that this could be one of the best nights of the summer.

Although it faces stiff competition from Tuesday night's line-up which sees Found sharing a stage with this lot. These are Cancel the Astronauts with Funny for a Girl:

Sunday night sees Miniature Dinosaurs headline. This is pretty perfect. It's called Fight or Flight:

It seems to me that if you have to pick and choose then it's the early week nights that offer the most. Monday the 25th sees Meursault, Over the Wall, Capitals and Miaoux Miaoux, and the Tuesday has The Seventeenth Century headline a superb line-up which also includes Endor, Crow Road, Liam Cairns and has this lot in the bar. This is Randolph's Leap with Going Home:

Wednesday (27th) has a really eclectic selection, from the 60's psychedelic pop of Haight-Ashbury to the melodies and acoustics of Bearbones, but you only need one reason to turn up on this night and that is the appearance of Blue Sky Archives. Here they are with Dear Middle Aged Ponytail:

There's plenty more to enjoy than these suggestions, but they are a good place to start. You can get your tickets by going to gigsinscotland.com. Hot Summer Nights guaranteed.

The Morning After the Night Before: A Review of Valve...

2011-07-13T17:01:00.011+01:00

There is a perennial problem in the arts in that it sometimes becomes more about the event, or the party, and the art itself becomes secondary. I've been to countless openings in galleries or 'spaces' where lots of people attend, take full advantage of the free wine (of which I'm as guilty as anyone), and then the exhibition hangs in an empty room for a month before the next party is due. Similarly I have been to many an album or single launch where half the people are on the guest list (again, guilty) and then the band are left with boxes of CDs which they find hard to shift.

This is unsurprising as there is the widely held desire to always be moving on to the next new thing, but the problem with that is some people who are interested in culture don't seem to give the time to that which they are supposed to be considering while they sup their warm beer. I can see this happening with literary events where we turn up, perhaps buy a copy of the book, even get it signed, and then said publication is added to a 'to do' collection as there is the première of the new Jobson movie at the Filmhouse tonight. Am I feeling cynical today, well perhaps a tad, but as a great man once said 'life moves pretty fast, if you don't stop and look around once in a while you could miss it'.

Which brings me once more to the literary journal known as Valve. There have been the fund-raisers and the launch, all of which have been great, but don't let them act as a full stop to the life of Valve. It deserves far better than that. I've been living with my copy for around a month now, dipping into it when I feel the desire rather than trying to consume in one sitting, and, considering this is the first publication for many of those involved, the quality of the writing is astonishingly high. There is fully formed short prose, exerts from novels, poetry that will make you laugh and break your heart, often within the same poem, and a small collection of journalism.

What is particularly interesting, if not surprising, is that the pieces which stood out when I heard them live have such a different dynamic when written on the page. Some improve when read, some work better in a live context. But it is the work which I had yet to encounter that most impressed, possibly for that very reason. What I realised was that those who had given us a sample of Valve's contents hadn't simply put forward the best work to lure us into a false sense of its worth, they were genuinely representative of the quality on offer.

There are too many highlights here to mention them all, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't flag up a few personal favourites. There is Stewart Brower's schizophrenic 'Loyal', which shouldn't work, but just does, Lesley McKeran's poems, Gabrielle Bennet's intricate, hyperrealistic, prose, Chris Beattie's 'The Film', Catherine Baird's visceral, and poetic, 'Snare' and Craig Lamont's poignant and moving 'In Threes'. But there is so much to enjoy here it feels slightly churlish highlighting individuals' work. Anyway, you're bound to disagree with me, and if you do then please let me know. I'd really love to know how others view Valve.

There is the feel of a new beginning here, but if that is to be the case then those involved, particularly readers, have to make sure that we engage with what we are bring offered. This isn't a collection that should be praised simply for existing, it is more than worthy of attention and critical consideration. I truly believe that there are writers in this collection that we will be hearing a lot more from. Remember where you heard it first.

Here's an excerpt from possibly my favourite piece. The reason for that is it looks at one of my favourite Scottish publications, one which I have written about in the past. It's Marianne Gallagher's 'Born Free', her excellent appreciation of the importance of Rebel Inc's The Children of Albion Rovers:

Children of Albion Rovers,  the first  anthology to come from the Rebel INC. imprint, collected the  work of a  seminal group of writers together for the first time, to  create a  landscape of a new literary Scotland. Bringing together the  writing  talent of Irvine Welsh, Alan Warner, Gordon Legge, James Meek,  Laura  Hird and Paul Reekie, it capitalised on the growing scene in  Edinburgh  and spoke to people in voices that they recognised, about  things they  experienced themselves. It broke with tradition, eschewing  the cosy  landscapes of the literature that went before, and celebrated  the  vernacular and the filth of urban Scottish life – both looking for  the  light in-between the cracks and examining the darkness. 

Rebel  Inc. itself began life as a  literary magazine. Inspired by the punk  fanzines of the 1970’s which  celebrated their D.I.Y. ethic and  challenged the status quo of the  conventional music press, Williamson  aimed to take a “sledgehammer to  the literary establishment”.  This  counter-cultural journal wanted a  place to express the frustrations of  a country post-Thatcher, and  examine the raved-up and raved-out  landscape of Scotland in the 90s.  For 4 years it ran, staying true to  its mantra of “fuck the  mainstream!” with the publication of 1994’s  “Ecstasy Interview” which  recorded an unedited conversation between  Irvine Welsh and Kevin  Williamson whilst both were under the influence  of the drug MDMA. This,  somewhat understandably, brought massive  attention to the magazine –  both dismissive and approving – and marked  it out as a challenging,  provocative publication.

Gordon  Legge brought the pop writing,  Irvine Welsh the whack of reputation and  the schemie slang. Laura Hird  gave a tale of a teen Lolita and an  aging, ogling teacher. From Meek,  one of the more under-rated gems of  the collection – the scheming and  misbehaviour of Edinburgh traffic  wardens was brought into sharp focus,  by way of a new uniform and a  Chinese board-game. Alan Warner brought  the hallucinogens and the  hallucinogenic imagery – lest we forget that  we are in the grip of the  ‘Chemical Generation’. 

Although  the alignment of music, film  and thought saw the Rebel Inc philosophy  tied up in a movement, the  real success – and intention – of the  anthology was in opening up  doors. The many literary events and  readings which continue on and  around Scotland are testament to the  ethos of this original team. Rebel  Inc may have hung up its boots, but  the ideas it brought to the game  will continue to run and run.

To read further extracts go to www.valvejournal.co.uk but what you should really do is buy yourself a copy. You can buy it from the above website, or indeed this one, pick it up in Waterstones or go to www.amazon.co.uk/Valve-Literary-Journal. So forgo that pint of Peroni, you have my word Valve will be the most worthwhile £5 you'll spend this year

You Have Been Watching...Fast Romance

2011-07-08T11:14:00.000+01:00

After having read some decidedly sniffy reviews about Glasgow set romantic comedy Fast Romance my expectations were not high. What I realise now, having seen the film, is the laziness of these reviews which have little to do with what actually happens on screen. Three in particular were almost interchangeable; all concentating on Richard Curtis's Love Actually, BBC Scotland's River City and Gregory's Girl rather than the film itself. Let's take these one at a time; critics are right, this is no Love Actually. And thank the Lord for that as it is the most smug and manipulative film I can think of off the top of my head. There is more heart and soul in Fast Romance than can be found in any Curtis' feature (I've just remembered the Curtis' 'made for TV' The Girl in the Cafe, so Love Actually might have to drop to number two).

Another accusation thrown at Fast Romance is that it is little more than a long version of River City, the justification for which seems to be nothing more insightful than the fact that some of those on screen have appeared on that soap at one time or another. Now I'll admit that I don't watch River City, but this strikes me as cultural snobbery at its very worst, prejudging that actors who appear in soaps should not appear on the big screen, or that they are only able to do one thing, and then not very well. River City may be a poor example of the genre, I don't know. I haven't watched a soap regularly since Mark Fowler became Tucker Jenkins in Eastenders, but to suggest a causal link in this manner is poor. Review the soap and review the film by all means, but don't try and suggest that your feelings for one have any significant bearing on the other.

The claim that had me most concerned was that this was a film that was trying to rip off Gregory's Girl. As many of you will know I bow to none in my admiration for that film and those that made it. But this is the most ludicrous accusation of all. Fast Romance wears its influences not just on its sleeve, it wears them head to toe and with pride. It has been made by people, director Carter Ferguson and writers James McCreadie and Debbie May, who are fully aware of Scotland's comedic history, and attempts to, if not place itself in this history, then at least pay homage to it. From the music, which has the sax and synth of Bill Forsyth's film, to the poster of Gregory on the wall, and the appearance of Robert Buchanan in a cameo, this is a warmhearted homage rather than an attempt to imitate. Buchanan is credited as Andy which is the name of the character he played in Gregory's Girl. He also gets to say 'I like to watch the smiley faces' which echoes a famous line from the earlier film.

But it doesn't stop there, in a central role is Vincent Freill, Will the 'wolfman' in the 1985 film Restless Natives (see You Have Been Watching...Restless Natives), and there is a copy of said film in one character's DVD collection, along with Local Hero and, yes, Gregory's Girl. There is also a nod to TV's comedy past. Barbara Rafferty, from, amongst other things, Rab C Nesbitt, is perfect as the satanic woman across the close, Dave Anderson, who despite his many credits on stage and screen is still known to many as Mr McLelland from City Lights, and, in one of my favourite moments in the film, there is the appearance of Greg Hemphill from Still Game and Chewin' the Fat delivering flowers from 'Villiers Flowers'. If you don't get the joke I'm afraid it's too convoluted to explain here. There are some lovely subtle touches in the film that seemed to have been overlooked by critics. Perhaps I'm being overly geeky about this, but this is a film which has been made with care.

Fast Romance is not going to feature in many people's list of the best movies of the year, nor has it any pretension to. It is pure entertainment of the kind that Scottish filmakers rarely attempt, and a film industry worth the name must have space for every genre and style. I don't know if the film makers, Coatbridge's Ickle Flix Ltd, encouraged the comparison with the work of Richard Curtis, but a more apposite comparison would be with David Kane's romantic comedies of the 1990s, This Year's Love and Born Romantic. It is not as accomplished as either of those films (and when is someone going to give Kane the money to make more movies?), but it has the same charm allied to a realistic world view. As with those earlier films, what stays with you is not the comedy or even the romance, but the moments when tragic, and dramatic, reality intervenes. This is when the actors involved shine. Here is the trailer:

Fast Romance has its faults. Some of the relationships, and indeed performances, don't quite work. But most do. William Ruane, as Gordy Boyd, is clearly put forward as the film's Gregory, and is well cast as the young man trying to make sense of what is unfolding around him. Derek Munn, as the decent and put upon Kenny, is the dramatic heart of the film, and Jo Freer's Nadine turns out to be more complex and astute than the audience are at first led to believe. She is also a natural comic actor who wins you over with her positive, idealistic, yet ultimately realistic, world view. In hindsight that is the films major strength, that the central characters who appear one dimensional to begin with develop as events unfold in a manner which is entirely beleivable. There are no dramatic changes of pace, just a gentle progression of people and plot.

The cameos by the more experienced cast threaten to overshadow those lesser known actors, but by the end it is the central relationships, their success or otherwise, that you care about. I'm not really an aficionado of the romantic comedy, but I do know the Scottish branch of the genre, and in a week when I finally got round to watching The Match (which has, from Richard E.Grant, one of the most ludicrous accents of all time, but more of that to come soon) I found Fast Romance really rather refreshing. It doesn't have many belly laughs, but I had a smile on my face for most of it, and was really moved by the more dramatic scenes. At a time when modern romantic comedy often means jokes about every taboo under the sun, this charmed me, and that was an unexpected, and rather lovely, thing to have happen.