Bella and The Bear

If you casually scan down Bella and The Bear's Facebook you'll see them modestly proclaim that they're 'really proud of this wee chapter' - if you listen to this delightfully well crafted EP which was produced by SAY Award nominated Hector Bizerk drummer Audrey Tait you'll be enchanted by this 'wee chapter' called A Girl Called Bella.

The Bizerk influences are there with hip hop-esque interjections making a track like Skeleton with Lauren Gilmour's sometime tender, some time soaring vocal breaking into spoken word making this lyrically clever almost folky track very special.




Magaluf on the other hand jazzes things up with an interesting vocal counterpoint between Lauren and fellow duetist Stuart Ramage. It's choppy and interesting from this Scottish SAMA Best Newcomer nominated pairing. Initially formed in 2014 Bella and The Bear are very quickly making a serious impact on the Scottish musical firmament with a CalMac Award for Best New Act and some truly impactive performances at HebCelt, Wickerman and Doune The Rabbit Hole.


Little Boat has a more introspective, soul searching feel with more spoken word from Gilmour and in Passenger they intertwine as Bella and The Bear giving us a very personal and comforting slice of musical bliss. Paper Planes on the other hand is for me the highlight of the five tracks, breaking from emotive vocal to intense spoken word and a perfectly fitting instrumental backdrop. Strong songwriting, well matched vocals and distinctive personality...what's not to like.

United Fruit

When the vet advised Ralph he should check out United Fruit I thought he was advising that he needed to get his five-a-day, but no - he was recommending a Glasgow band with a new album in the making and a track being streamed from it this very day. The four piece Alt Rockers United Fruit, who formed in 2009 describe their style as - 'fusing noisy, fast-paced, discordant, post-punk with catchy melodies and crunching riffs'. 





Their first album 'Fault Lines' hit the ground running, gained no end of critical acclaim seeing them perform live sessions on Radio 1, BBC Radio Scotland, toured the UK and Europe over 5 times and played festivals such as T In The Park, Wickerman, Brew At The Bog and Stag And Dagger. United Fruit have also supported bands such as the late lamented Dananananaykroyd, Twin Atlantic, And So I Watch You From Afar, Die! Die! Die!, one of Ralph's favourites The Twilight Sad and Maps And Atlases.



How Long (Change You Into Something Better) by United Fruit




The taster track from the album is 'How Long (Change You Into Something Better)' which is in a lighter vein than their usual frenetic, more aggressive style and it's sure to garner them wider acclaim. It's catchy, current and the change of pace intrigued Ralph so much he made it Record Of The Week on this Sunday's Indie Show on Radio KC and asked United Fruit bassist Marco Panagopoulos a few pointed questions...not all related to the track...

Ralph: I'm a fan of your more 'punky' style - and whilst I understand the want for a bigger listenership, is the 'injected pop whack' a change of direction/spread throughout the album or just a blip?

Marco: The rest of the new record is a lot different from 'How Long(Change You Into Something Better)'.  It is much faster paced and punky but we have a couple of tracks where we wanted to experiment and try something we hadn’t really done before.  The entire record is much more direct and melodic than 'Fault Lines' but still has the same unhinged energy.

Ralph: Given the current trend for EP's over Albums what's your preference?

Marco: I always prefer full albums.  I takes a lot more time and effort to record and compile a great album than it does an EP so when the end product sounds amazing it is a lot more impressive.

Ralph: Scotch Pie or Deep Fried Pizza?

Marco: Deep Fried Pizza.

Ralph: You've a faithful following in Scotland and toured the UK & Europe previously- setting your sights on world domination?


Marco: We would love nothing more than to tour all round the world.  We will keep going as far as we can on the road and hopefully we’ll get there some day!

Ralph: More upcoming gigs/festival dates now the UK tour is over? 

Marco: We have a few such as goNorth on the 4th of June and Carefully Planned down in Manchester on the 18th of October as well as another couple that I can’t mention just yet.  We’ll be supporting Flood Of Red in Stereo, Glasgow on the 28th of May and also playing with Tall Ships in Bowlers Bar as part of the Eastend Social.

Ralph: Given your reputation as one of the best live acts on the Scottish Indie scene do you find working in the studio on an album a constraint? 

Marco: Not at all.  We enjoy recording.  Sometimes getting the songs out of your head and recorded makes you notice things you didn’t before and you can actually improve your performance from it!

Ralph: Red Cola or Irn Bru?

Marco: Irn Bru

Many thanks to thelineofbestfit.com
from whom I have 'borrowed' this photo.

Ralph: You've played a number of festivals how do they compare/do you prefer them to the smaller more intimate gigs in the likes of Electric Circus or Stereo?

Marco: Festivals are amazing fun.  We love the atmosphere and it never hurts to play in front of hundreds and hundreds of people but sometimes you can’t beat the feeling of being in a tiny sweaty room, surrounded by the crowd, giving it all you’ve got. Some of our favourite gigs have been the small ones.





So there you have it, the answer to the eternal musical question...deep fried pizza and Irn Bru every time...me, I'm off to have a listen to 'Fault Lines' and book my place for the 18th October in Manchester at Carefully Planned...

Vigo Thieves - Live Review

Being an equal opportunity Jack Russell, Ralph's added to his squad (OK there's one guy) of reviewers in Scotland.  What better occasion for a first time review than to send photographer Kate Johnston into the fray for the first time than Vigo Thieves sold out headline show in The Arches Glasgow.  Vigo Thieves are on the verge of greatness yet remain unsigned, but not for long with such a strong live set and a list of stellar performances including Wickerman, T in the Park and two sell out shows in King Tuts. They were supported on the night by Dundee band Model Aeroplanes and the aptly named Glasgow band Arches.








So I'll let budding band photographer Kate Johnston set the scene via words and her most excellent pictures...

With a difficult time slot to fill, Model Aeroplanes began to play their set to a crowd who were more pre-occupied with socializing at the bar. Set in the stunning underground venue that is The Arches, the confident voice from the lead man was whole-heartedly supported by pitch-perfect harmonies from the other guitarist and bassist throughout each of their songs. 

However, each track was not clearly distinguishable, with a lot of the music sounding very similar to previous tracks with little variation. The size of the crowd picked up around the front barrier as Model Aeroplanes launched into their last track of the night, letting the last chord ring out, then coming back in with a final short drum fill to finish their set and make way for the next set.

With a pre-recorded track playing in the background, the second supporting act, Arches, arrive on stage and launch into their set list, much to the delight of the audience. Bumping the microphone off his chest and swaying with his hands wrapped around the stand, front man Michael Rice’s voice rings out into the crowd as he asks them if they are having fun. Answered by screaming, Arches continue with their incredible set of tracks – definitely an up-and-coming band that are worth listening to.

After their second to last song, When The Night Ends comes to a close, the band announces that they have one last track to play before giving way to headliners, Vigo Thieves. After a quick group huddle around the drum kit, Rice turns round and breaks the news to the crowd that they are not being allowed to play their final song. They give their thanks, apologize and leave behind a disappointed audience.

They're not disappointed for long – Vigo Thieves arrive on stage welcomed by a thunderous roar from the crowd 'underneath the arches'. Glowsticks had been distributed during the last band’s set, and almost every member of the audience was raising their arms to the roof, neon blue sticks aloft. After three tries, the crowd was loud enough in answering lead man Stevie Jukes’ question: “Glasgow, are you ready to blow this roof off?”.

A set list including a new song and some crowd surfing, the crowd that was gathered underneath the arches were in for an incredible night of music from Glasgow’s hottest unsigned band. Having played at T in the Park and supporting The View, Vigo Thieves should have been no strangers to such a large crowd.

“The other night we played for a group of about thirty people, and then we come here and there’s seven-hundred of you. It’s crazy”, Jukes tells the crowd as they push further and further forward against the front barrier, threatening to bring it down. The boys surprise the audience by performing a stripped down version of their hit, ‘Heartbeats’ and receive a mass of noise from under every arch in appreciation.

Exiting the stage after a short encore, Vigo Thieves provided every audience member a memorable night, and one that they will no doubt want to experience again. Watch out for these boys in 2014, you’ll be proud to say you knew them before they got big. Which they will.