OOTB 293 – 20 March 2008

Broken Tooth, Ross Neilson/Zen Transmission, Freeloadin Frank, Jenny, Davy O’Hara, Nyk Stoddart, Jordan Ogg, Hugh Mann, Calum Carlyle and Jimmy, Jake Logan and Ross Coburn, Marcies New Haircut aka Kieron(debut)

Broken Tooth aka Electric White Boy Under his new moniker ‘Broken Tooth’ Jim brings us the blues with ‘Riding on the rail’ which sounds to me like John Lee Hooker wiv Led Zep thing, and even has Beatlesque ‘ooohs’ at certain points, although that could just be my warped imagination! I also can’t help but imagine what he’d sound like with shades and an electric guitar, as this sounds like the type of material that’ll really cook with it – although obviously not in the literal sense, as he’d have to carry a mini gas stove with him at all times, and that would be heavy…man. ‘I’ve lost my faith in love’ has a staccato attack wiv jazzy inflected chords, nice… He finishes with his new prog rock thing ‘Hold fast’ with its tales of ocean faring adventure. A fantastic start to the evening, holding everyone in rapt attention. Great to listen to when floating in outer space, as one does! www.myspace.com/electricwhiteboy www.myspace.com/crawdaddyblues

Ross Neilson/Zen Transmission Ross has been playing at OOTB for a wee while now and has a good line in brooding, but mellow, melodic songs. He often has well-crafted lyrics too, as the first song shows – ‘grass was green but not true like the sun’ was one line that stood out for me. In ‘julie come home’ he sings of ‘watching you in a beautiful disguise’ which i think is a great line, along with ‘dark passages of light smash a window in my heart’. His singing shows many different tonal colours within his vocal range, a performer who can command an audience quite easily – and whose songs bear repeated listening. A polished and interesting performer that’s always good to hear. http://www.myspace.com/zentransmission

Freeloadin Frank Roaming OOTB fixture Frank dedicates his first song ‘Rupert Murdoch’ to a well known social networking person, although what it has to do with ‘ol Rupert i don’t know! I’ve always liked the way he mixes it up with controversial subject matter. ‘King Kong’ is a crazed love song about a famous fictional ape and a rather large tower with planes crashing into it or something..’climbing up the empire state building, cos i’m so in love with you’ and ‘stood on a couple of cops…oops!’ are some of my favourite lines – finishing with a corny (deliberate i’m sure!) kazoo finale. We end the spectacular journey with a…hmmm…journey in ‘magic cornflake’ – this gets everyone going…before too long (or too long before) we’ll know him as singalongafrank… http://www.myspace.com/freeloadinfrank

Jenny As our compere for the night, Rosie Bell, pointed out, its good to see a woman up at the mike/mic – with the passionate ‘Freedom’ which she sings with some effortless high notes. She sings of the desire to find freedom from oneself, a trap we can all fall into. It’d be good to hear a full set from her soon. Come back soon please!

Davy O’Hara Heavy strummming…only joking! – Davy mellows us out wiv ‘Arabian Nights’ displaying some well nice fingerwork, wheras ‘Accidentals’ has a brooding european quality, with a bit of tequila sunset in there too, with its haunting and reflective minors and sevenths. It helps to hear him amplified, as in rowdier environments his playing, unfortunately, can be too soft – but that’s in the nature of proper classical guitar playing – it’s more meditative, and requires more attention paid to it. Nice one Davy!

(Darren Thornberry takes over reviewing while i play)

Nyk Stoddart Nyk seems a bit subdued tonight as ‘Songwriter’ begins. It’s as if he’s truly contemplating the words as they spill out. ‘You were born/bored, but only in your mind …’ Nice extended hum outro. Next ‘Out of the Fire, Into the Rain’ is a good ol’ bluesy number that we would be glad to hear again soon. ‘Tombstoning’ is as caustic as ever, shouting up the nihilism of stupid sports celebrity hijinx. By the end, Nyk is rocking to the beat and attacking his instrument. Good set from a faithful OOTB-ite. www.mutantlodge.com

(I return!)

Jordan Ogg The very talented Jordan starts the OOTB feature act with ‘Helpless Again’, he sings clear vocals that allowed me to pick up the lyrics (something that can, surprisingly, take some time to master) with lines like ‘history of rock may have not taught me about soul   and ‘would you be my Yoko’ accompanied by accomplished guitar playing and the addition of guitar body ‘tapping’ adding a percussive element reminiscent of boxcars chugging along a train track, somewhere. Jordan then jokes about putting himself in peril by singing a ‘love song for Glasgow’ – i’m sure at this point i heard someone in the audience shout ‘kill him!’…jokingly of course, us musos are a mellow bunch! ‘Dark and the deep blue sea’ was written about his return to Shetland, where he grew up, and the things that he discovered upon his return – ‘I should have come back a little more prepared’ he states before wailing into his harp – an instrument i’ve always liked as an accompaniment to a guitar. Indeed, his fingerpicking, along with strumsy hand muting create some clever dynamics within the song. ‘Pigeon Pie’ is one of my favourites, starting with a few lines about seeing a dead pigeon, it soon goes off on a tangent, with lines like ‘She looked so pretty when she cried’ and ‘whatever happened to redemption, the kids no longer sing along’. This song goes in my different directions, and i demand to hear this at OOTB again soon! ‘The prettiest bird’ finishes the set and has a great harp intro with melodic indie jazzy chords. He sings ‘the prettiest birds sing the prettiest songs’ making me wonder is he making a comment on a myth amongst musicians? Overall, a great set from an interesting and polished artist. Keep on keepin’ on, and remember to return to OOTB with whatever fantastic stuff you’ve written! http://www.myspace.com/jordanogg

Hugh Mann I know it’s irrelevant, but he wears a cap…in the ‘Same Old Man’ he sings of ‘every time I scramble free i end up back in misery’. ‘The light within my eyes’ has some jangly open chords – which seems to be a song about springtime – hoping to ‘take all your troubles and throw them away’ ‘Dream time and silence’ he says is a ‘wee song about drugs with a slant’ with mentions of ‘pill popping housewives’ and ‘so many highs seem to take me low’. A theme which is very much of our time – the wish to escape from our realities by whatever means possible, and its dangers. Hugh has a soulful voice which works especially well, grabbing the attention of the audience. Hope to see some more songs from you soon Hugh!

Calum Carlyle and Jimmy I’ve always enjoyed this duo, who always manages to bring a slice of Orkney with them. With ‘Dawn Song’ – ‘the world is ending, not with a bang but a whimper’ he sings, i think – but there sound isn’t…it’s a plaintive mix of folky guitar and resonator mandolin, creating a heady sound…the mandolin also especially good at drowning out harmoniums and suchlike in folky environments, apparently. ‘Promise of a perfect day’ is about moving from Orkney to Thurso…a dangerous journey indeed… ‘Modern Man’ reminds me, for some strange reason, of bar-room Americana – but that could just be my head… To finish, Calum does our oft-repeated favourite ‘The sound of falling in love at first sight’ – wiv lines like ‘you were the one true thing i can believe in’. The constantly changing key creates an up and down melodic elevation that sums up for me the whole territory… Wiv a great combination of melodic vocals and haunting songs, mired deep within the folk tradition, while still sounding contemporary all i can say is please keep making the journey to and from Orkney to play to us! http://www.myspace.com/calumcarlyle

Jake Logan and Ross Coburn I don’t know if they’ve played at OOTB before, but Jake Logan, the next female performer of the night accompanied with Ross Coburn start with ‘Face Me’ – where Jake shows her rock-chic credentials singing of ‘if you face me, i’ll face you’ and how she’s ‘learned to be alone’. ‘Got sugar in my tears’ has a nice line in snazzy pop melodics that glides along without a glitch, whereas ‘Here Now’ pushes up the tempo into the world of r-o-c-k (that isn’t an acronym by the way!, although i don’t know where i’m going with this) An excellent performance where they both create a sound and image that would appeal to a large audience with the added touch of Jakes groovy pink boots!

Marcies New Haircut aka Kieron (debut) We didn’t recognise our own Darren Thornberry recently, we would walk past him and pause, puzzled…something he’s gotten used to since he’s shaved his beard… Marcie, however, hasn’t and it’s good to see there are still some of us beardies still left! This is not Marcie, and not a new haircut, but an OOTB first-timer who has plucked up the courage to dive in and be heard, an experience i remember quite well meself… ‘Psycho pop loving song’ is an up tempo number, with reggae inflections singing of how he ‘tried to make everything right with you’. ‘Neeps and apples’ seems to have quite a few lyrics, unfortunately i didn’t catch all of them as they seemed to go by so fast! However, the whole feel of the song has an almost nursery rhyme feel to it, in common with his other songs, with some melodic fingerpicking. Despite his obvious nervousness, Kieron did a good first performance, showing that just getting up there and doing it is the best way to learn and gain more confidence. We all look forward to your presence at OOTB again soon! http://www.myspace.com/marciesnewhaircut And now it’s time for me to launch my spacecraft, and return to my homeworld…all words are coincidental, with no intended meaning or purpose…

Compere: Rosie Bell, Sound: David O’Hara, Review: Nyk Stoddart

OOTB 292 – 13 March 2008

John Downie, Rosie Bell, Hannah O’Reilly, Susanna McDonald, Jake Cogan & Ross Coburn, Ivor, Mike, Furious

John Downie
Well Jonnny’s back and this time he’s much more confident. J treats us to a number of amusing stories between songs, about how reviewers have commented on how scruffy he looks (so tonight he’s wearing a shirt) and how bad his guitar playing is (well it is simple, but it suits his unashamedly ‘pop’ delivery).
‘Times, they are a changing’ is typical of this and quite a catchy tune.
The second number adds a capo which unfortunately makes the guitar soo out of tune its painful. It also has lots of strangely unresolved 4th at the ends of lines. Hmm. At this point I pause to consider how lovely the room looks with all the candles that Jim has spread around.
‘I’ll Sail away’ is his most commercial sounding of the night, with its chug, chug guitar its not virtuosic, but its competant, who were these other reviewers?

Rosie Bell
This is Rosie’s first time playing in public since she broke her wrist, and is enjoying ‘getting back in the saddle’. Bad joints, uppity sustain pedal and poor keyboard notwithstanding, its great to hear lyrics of this quality. We are treated to a set of ‘Pollen and Salt’, ‘Nice to have you around’, and ‘The Open Mic.’ ‘Go down to the open-mic and we can dream together’ says it all.

Hannah O’Reilly
Susannah has given Hannah a present of a pink Ukulele this afternoon, and Hannah has already written a song for it. The diminutive instrument is camper than Craig Hill running around a field of pink tents, and causes no end of hilarity/heckling. I insist that its just a matter of perspective and Hannah holds it out at arms length until it looks almost guitar sized. Perhaps the instrument is fine, but Hannah supped from the bottle marked ‘drink me’. Who knows, but it’s a curious juxtaposition of a beautiful song played with a comedy instrument. ‘It was dead good’, I find written on my notes, probably by Ben.

Susannah McDonald
Susannah brings a stagefull of goodies tonight, and sits surrounded by equipment. She starts however with a belter ‘singing you a love song’ with just the guitar.
Buddha on the Sideboard is a great song, but it is in the set for one reason only, on its last outing RSC misheard the title as ‘Buddha, the Cyborg’. And tonight this song is indeed followed by a new song of that name. Its all about trying to meditate when your kids are driving you irate, surely if Buddha was a Cyborg he would struggle as we do. My favourite was ‘Remembered Laughter’ based on the Noel Coward poem of the same name. It’s a sophisticated song in 5/8, played with far more assurance that its last outing, and very affecting with its powerful lyrics.
Susannah rounds off the night with ‘Insomniatic’ using all her gadgetry to create loops on the fly with guitar, Cahon, keyboard, and vocals all taking their turn.
The whole point of this song is lying awake with the same thing going around and around –  I guess loops are appropriate, but its mighty difficult to concentrate on your performance whilst operating all this machinery. I did, however love the inspector gadget keyboard line – and secretly I think we all want to play with her toys.

Jake Cogan & Ross Coburn (debut)
Jake and Ross are a fine act, normally frequenting Sandy Bells. It certainly doesn’t sound like a debut to me.
Ross’ guitar is fabulous, lovely open-tuned playing, very accomplished and the Jake’s vocals are fairly amazing too, she stands at the mic with body language very much like Debbie Harry, all pouting and attitude, which I loved. They play ‘Foolish Hearts’, ‘Spinning Room’ (about being pished) and ‘Honest Mirror’. A classy set all round.

Ivor(debut)
Instrumental. Ivor says he has just been pursuaded to try open tunings, and nice it is too. I’d have to say it sounds a little like the backing to a song rather than complete on its own, but he says it’s a work in progress, so we’ll wait and see. Perhaps next time he’ll sing. The playing provoked lots of appreciate sounds from people around me.

Mike
As a curious piece of technical hiccoughs, I start to hear a heartbeat behind the music. It gradually becomes more invasive, before suddenly stopping at the end of the tune. Actually its Mike’s guitar dying, and although entirely unintended it was quite effective. His second is from his band ‘Salvador’ and is altogether more poppy. He rounds off with a third number that is more frenetic and has more spannish guitar, but vocals a bit like ‘Ferry cross the Mersey’.

Furious
And rounding off the evening a performer who apparently used to play regularly in the early days of OOTB is back. ‘Their time’s more precious than mine’, having heard many anti-war songs, its interesting to hear one as a call to remember service personnel. PMR says its very John Mellencamp. ‘Nothing’s right’ a song with a rather curious double bend, and finally ‘Another Wave’. This is a very accomplished and controlled set and fine songwriting too. An excellent end to a very enjoyable evening’s music.

OOTB 291 – 6 Mar 2008

Colin Milne, Open Sea, Mark Roper, Glen Smith, Fletcher, Ian Sclater, Gary, Nigel Ashwood, Hughes and McQuaid, Paul Gladwell, Cameron

All the slots are taken well before the event is due to start, it’s a sign that bodes very well for the evening. Several debuts, some regulars, some returning old-timers, and a mix of standards and styles that makes OOTB what it is.

Colin Milne
Colin’s songs are tender, sweet and full of the wisdom of a long life. Colin (so a birdy told me) is 87 but could easily pass for 20 years younger, I only hope that I will be writing songs as witty, wonderful, and occasionally filthy at that age. Tonight he plays his glute* unplugged and really engages the audience. I particularly like the one about sleeping with (or not sleeping with) a ‘pro’. The songs and playing have always been great, but Colin is really growing in confidence.

*[that’s a cross between a guitar and a lute, rather than the muscle of the same name]

Open Sea (Debut)
Open Sea make their OOTB debut tonight, and only their 2nd live performance ever. Ah the lovely sound of expensive guitars. They weave a rich soundscape with 2 guitars, one strumming, one picking, 2 vocals in harmony, and a fiddle too!. (the guitarists swap instruments each song, apparently their wives don’t allow them to buy enough guitars.) OK so they are not yet performance veterans, but no one has any business being this confident or good on their debut, and I for one, am an instant convert.

Mark Roper
Mark stretches the OOTB rules to the limit by bringing backing tracks on a computer and offering what therefore became a karaoke performance. I’m not questioning the song-writing, or his cleverness in the studio creating the backing tracks, but its not exactly in the spirit of an acoustic open-mic night. Next time please bring a guitar or keyboard, I’d love to hear you live, and I think it would help you to engage more with the audience, and help us to hear more of the songwriting and less of the production. The best cure for nerves is more performance.

Glenn Smith
Nice to see Glenn back after rather too long a break from OOTB. He brings a confident performance with his tradmark gravelly voice. I’m not sure if it was the PA or the performance, but it sounded a little aggressive tonight, its usually rather more smokey and smooth. Actually the first two songs were quite dark and a little menacing. The 3rd song is gentler and more optomistic. We would like to point out to all performers that ootb does allow happy songs, so thanks to Glenn for raising the mood.

(Break)

Fletcher (Main Act)
It must be said tonight’s OOTB is the busiest of the year, helped considerably by the large number of ‘Fletchlings’, so by the time our main act hit the stage it is standing room only.
Fletcher (Ben Cowan and Finn Donaldson) are an accomplished double act: Finn creating spannish guitar textures with classical poise, and Ben milking his performance of rock vocals for all he’s worth – and throwing in the odd Les Paul solo to boot.
Down by the Riverside, a perennial favourite, and grim tale about Edinburgh justice.
Great Expectations, It may be a small room, but Ben is going to wail like he’s playing Madison Square Gardens. (the poor sound guys dive for the volume controls) Finn is clinically proficient as ever.
Rufus, tonight without the ‘Birdsong’ introduction. Its about a man who’s ‘always got another bottle of wine’. It might be written about me. Ben goes in for a typically restrained Les Paul moment, oh no he doesn’t – a man after my own heart.
Seeds are Sown. It’s a perfect love song (many admiring comments from the lovely Fletchlings).
Buridan’s Ass. Who said guitarists can’t play contrary motion scales. Also features Finn’s first vocal performance.
Children of Abraham, a biblical tale only marred by the less that sensitive timing of coming in a week when there have been protests (at Ben & Finn’s Uni!) against Israel’s appalling recent treatment of their neighbours. But tonight’s crowd are not political and forget about the words after Ben breaks into another extended guitar solo.
Fletcher were, very generously, giving out free copies of their EP recorded at that well-know edinburgh institution called Windmill Sound. You can find them at www.Myspace.com/FletcherUK. Look out for the album coming soon.

Ian Sclater
The girl downstairs, who works with raptors. It’s a comedy number about Ian playing his music too loud for the neighbours, and goes down very well with the audience, especially the James Blunt jibe.
Black Silk, lovely song about a lady of the night.
Isabella, another song about a lovely woman, are your catching a theme toinight. There’s rather a lot of romantic encounters and much regret.

Ghostboy
Nice to see Gary as he’s not played here in a while. He is confident and on form tonight. A brand new song, ‘Fully Loaded Gun’ has rhythmic playing with just a little attitude, and gets every foot in the room tapping. Its just a squashee tonight, but we’d love to hear a full set soon.

Nigel Ashwood
Nigel played happy songs the last time and was not lynched so he is back again (see everyone it is possible). I’ve seen Nigel in the room a number of times, but tonight is the first time I’ve heard him play. He has a large-bodied Taylor with a deep sonorous tone, lovely. Songs aren’t bad either. ‘Angel in Stone’ is about someone beautiful but unresponsive,  I keep thinking of that episode of Dr Who, but then I’m sad that way. ‘Start’ is a song with a lot of stops. A competant set from a relative newcomer.

Hughes and McQuaid (Debut)
H&M are obviously nervous tonight, but really have no need to be, the songs, the playing and the vocals are all first class (Hughes’ voice especially). I think the songwriting and voice are both there, but the performance angle needs a little work to involve the audience more and add a little sparkle.  A few more performances to steady the nerves and these could be truly excellent.
The songs overall have a bit of a 60’s feel to them almost skiffle at times, and Hughes voice sounds rather Del Amitri, quality.
Their first number is slightly stompy, and with a little more confidence could be a real party track.
‘Lonely’ is more skiffle with high harmonies
H&M use that great technique having one guitar with Capo at the 4th fret so that they play the same chords with different voicings, giving a richer sound.

Paul Gladwell
Suddenly the room goes silent and everyone stops what they are doing and are glued intently to Paul’s performance. It’s unsaid, but mutually agreed that this is how you write songs.
‘Tell me what to believe’ has pithy witty lyrics, and is delivered at incredible speed. Paul looks all restrained and unflappable, but that’s difficult stuff.
‘Poets and Business’ is cooler and jazzier. He may be playing the house guitar, but Paul can make a simple guitar line sound fabulous.
Finally a song about a bella pasta in Inverness. One of the secrets of songwriting is the use of phrases which evoke far more meaning than the plain words: ‘Table for One’ says it all.

Cameron (Debut)
It’s his first time playing for 5 months, with the exception of Binkies on Monday (but that does not count due to playing cover’s). Cameron spent the evening encouraging other performers, he can come again, its really what the night is about. So now that he comes to play I’ll not hear a bad word about him.
His first song is a bluesy number about a breakup. The words start quite acidly, but Cameron being such a happy guy seems to have forgotten to put on his grumpy head before starting the song, he gets into it as the song progresses.
Grip is a pithy political number about soldiers with no equipment.
Cameron is so into his songs that its quite engaging  – that said some eye contact with the audience would be good.
His last number has lots of guitary chords and is sung much more gently, it really suits his voice. All told he sings with a lot of conviction. One to watch.

Compare: Daniel Davis & John Lamb, Sound: Malcolm, Review: Daniel Davis & Davis O’Hara

OOTB 290 – 28 February 2008

CBQ, Eddie, Calum Carlyle, Free Loading Frank, Broken Tooth, Dave O’Hara, Aaron Lowenberger, Iona Marshall, Nyk Stoddart, Ross Nielson, Trent Amour, Jake Cogan & Ross

The Canon’s Gait was packed for a fun-packed night of stylish performers – Big Jim wore his compering hat and an exceedingly fetching Out Of The Bedroom t-shirt (available at OOTB, be quick to get hold of this season’s limited edition must-have!).

OOTB old-schooler CBQ headed off proceedings with a dreamy number recalling how he ‘fell for [her] blue eyes across the moon’… Then ‘The End of Everything’, which raises the tempo a bit, and promptly sends me spiralling into melancholic ‘if only I’d known then what I know now’ desperation.  Ah, you can’t beat a bit of misery, I always say. The third song transports us to a continental cafe; sipping coffee and watching the world go by under the setting sun.  It was quite beautiful.

Eddie (minus is compatriot, Chris – who are part of Broken Lights I believe), is someone I have recently discovered and I’m very much enjoying discovering his tunes.  This was the first time I’d seen him without Chris, but he still managed to do justice to the songs.  His songs seem to talk of wild places and the weather, perhaps some metaphor for life. Anyways, just my thing.  ‘Rock’ describes how they built their house on a hillside, so when it rains, they’ll be ok.  That’s some top notch forward planning what with all this climate change & flooding stuff.  He then treats us to a brand new song, which I didn’t quite catch the name of.  It has a dark moody intro on the bass notes of the guitar. It makes me think of listening to radio whilst floating in the sea.  He says ‘there’s something lurking under the water’.  Eek. The final number, ‘High Acclaim’, is sweetly melancholic, sung over beautiful picky chords.  I love the vocal style, soft yet with depth.

Calum Carlyle is looking very dapper, in very smart suit attire.  He delivers a set of quirky & very well conceived commentaries on life. ‘Whispers in the wind’ was probably my favourite of the night, with a really intriguing walking bass-line on the guitar, mixed with chiming chords.  He talks of tea with sugar, served up with cheese. How very British.  From that, we switch to beefed up rock n roll where you can almost hear the fuzz box and the drum kit.  Dark & unsettling melody swirls over the clatter of bashed guitar, it’s cool as.  A bit more laid-back on the third song ‘Don’t go away’ (?), which features random falsetto sections.  Love a bit of that.

We are treated to one of Free Loading Frank’s public health messages in a wee one song slot…. you know the one… ‘Cannabis is very good for you’. Indeed, none of us should ever need the doctor ever again.  Frank pulls off this kind of thing better than anyone I know, you truly do believe him & his nursery rhyme type melody.

Next up is an OOTB debut!  Or hang on a minute, don’t I know that face? Crikey, it’s Mr Jim Thompson, aka the man formerly known as Electric White Boy, now known as ‘Broken Tooth’.  Good to see that the name change hasn’t resulted in a style change, and we still have our skilful bluesman with his ever-powerful vocals.  ‘Hold Fast’ starts small and ends big. No, massive, with outro full of fancy guitar work and big crescendo.  Second, ‘Miller’s Daughter’, complete with new intro (nice).  It’s one of my preferred Jim songs, and was good to hear.  I wondered if he ever spoke to the miller’s Daughter, or he only ever just saw her across the water. ‘Will you sing at my funeral?’ was a bit less of the quiet sensitive side, and back with the blues gravely voice, and it gets all speeded up at the end. Pretty cool…

Dave O’Hara, the elusive sound man emerges from behind his desk and enchants us with some of his fragile classical-style instrumentals.  He gets more confident every time I see him, though he still hides behind that hat.  His second tune was my favourite of the set, quite brooding and repetitive, and it draws you in like, er, a spiral stair-case going down and down into black emptiness.  I liked.  Finally, he tested out a flamenco style tune, still in development.  Hope it keeps developing, it definitely showed signs of becoming an O’Hara classic.

And then suddenly, without any notice, Big Jim transformed into Mr Rob Sproul-Cran, and our dreaded hero took over the reigns in style (yes, he too looked pretty dapper in trade-mark suit).

Aaron Lowenberger has been one of the big discoveries of 2008, but sadly, this ootb REALLY IS his last ever before returning to the other side of the pond 🙁  He’ll be sadly missed as he’s one of the most interesting and exciting guitarists kicking about these here parts.  Watching him doing his melodic instrumental guitar acrobatics is nothing short of awe-inspiring.  He played us a new song, ‘the way forward is back’ (perhaps a reference to his departure?) which was an optimistic sounding, bouncy tune with nice little hammer on and pull-offs, brings a tear to the eye.  Good luck Aaron.

And then for tonight’s featured act, the somewhat legendary Iona Marshall. She’s happy to be invited back to ootb, after it supported her back in the early days, and she gives a very assured performance, show-casing her vocal talents and distinctive style.  The first song ‘Two Hearts   is one of my faves, about being left hanging in the ocean, waiting for her love to bring her back to shore – in this case it’s the tides she awaits.  I like the metaphor of the sea.  Another highlight for me was the protest song against our favourite US president, which follows traditionally folky protest song rules, but is well worth the listen.  Her vocal style is unique, it jumps around all over the scale effortlessly, and sometimes appears to sing entirely different rhythms from the guitar, yet it all fits together perfectly, she even does a song in Spanish, which is great – luckily, or unluckily, my Spanish is quite sparse, so I don’t really know what it was about.  Her set was over all too soon… she finished with a number about wanting to be on a mountain – I can relate to that.

Nyk Stoddart – overcomes some technical issues with guitar and has Rob SC hold his lead into the end of the guitar while he’s playing.  It adds a certain something to the performance, but restricts him from his usual stage antics, unfortunately.  Still, stuck to one spot he still plays a blinder, punching out all the favourites. Fake jazz is top of my list, summing up the plight of a jazz guitarist – or at least someone attempting the old jazzy chords.  Nyk’s actually a pretty flash guitarist, and leaps effortlessly between strange diminished chords.  I love these kinds of chords, which perhaps isn’t the point, but what the hey, I enjoyed it. His last song exclaims ‘I’m an idiot, I’m a fool, and I don’t understand your rules’.  We’ve all been there.

Ross Nielson is the true indie troubadour, and looks the part with woolly hat and earnest lyrics about seeking the truth.  ‘Remember the time we stood in the dark?’…. he asks.  You can tell he really means it, and he really feels it.  His next song ‘Let Faith decide’, is similar in tone. Finally, he gets a bit wistful, remembering how ‘stars were in your eyes’ (or was it ‘you were on ‘stars in their eyes”? – er, no, maybe not).  I’m not sure if Ross has a band, but I think I can hear parts in my head. I reckon he can hear them too, and some of these songs would probably sound great with some more instrumentation.  They’re true dark indie chic.

Trent Amour looks like a proper indie kid too (maybe indie’s not the right word, but I like his t-shirt).  He sings in a very high register, full of emotion and real pain.  I must admit I was beginning to flag at this point in a very enjoyable evening, so didn’t catch as many of the words as I would have liked, but I did hear him mention ‘living in sin, waiting for answers’…. But do the answers ever come? He sings a song about some friends of his in love; I couldn’t tell if it was a happy ending.  Finally ‘my heart beats every time’, is a ballady, heart-felt song with that high vocal register lingering over dark chords.  Like Ross before him, there’s potential here for a band to really add to these songs.

Jake Cogan & Ross – I have never seen Jake before, and was very pleased to see that Jake was indeed a female Jake, given the severe lack of women performers at the moment it was a long awaited welcome change, and a great way to end a packed night at the CG.  Jake’s voice is one of the best, so deep, powerful and strong, yet with a massive range, and an ability to reach the high notes and sing softly at the same time.  Ross’s guitar is the perfect accompaniment, arpeggios filling out the sound.  ‘Honest Mirror’ is about, um, an honest mirror, I would say, and how it ‘tells no lies’.  In ‘Think of me’, Jake’s voice is reminiscent to me, of Beth Orton, though a lot more powerful than Beth’s.  It’s beautifully calm & reflective.  Finally, a bit early I know, but we get possibly our first Xmas song of the year… It rocks, dude.  you can tell they’re like total pros. Jake knows how to hang of the mic stand and not fall over, and they just generally know how to look cool & confident, and we could all learn a lot from that.  A perfect end to a top night.

Compere: Big Jim/RSC Sound: Dave ‘ga ga’ O’Hara Review: Lindsay Sugden

OOTB 289 – 21 February 2008

Darren Thornberry, Colin Milne, Starship, Hannah O’Reilly, Johnny Pugh, Aaron Lowen Berger, Rossco Galloway (Featured Act), Yogi, Colin Donati, Nigel Ashworth (debut), Ian Petrie

Our compere, Darren Thornberry, kicks things off with ‘In Theory’ which features his trademark  soaring counter-tenor. The tentative early days of a relationship trusting nothing   do not last and the novelty cannot sustain forever, love was meant to hold us.

Colin Milne Describes these songs as cathartic, with which most musicians purging demons through song can well sympathise. The first is a song of love, I believe for an offspring, your tootsies sure they’re tiny  . Either that, or a very small woman. ‘Divorces r us’ is a stung husband talking of a predatory ex wife, and of her new prey, is it pity or envy, I can’t make my mind up.   His third starts with some fine chords before moving towards more flourish with flowing arpeggios.  This man grows with every outing: more, please.

Starship Squashee Stoddart regales with ‘Another Song.’ I’d like to print his opening gambit, but I’m not OFCOM wouldn’t allow the blasphemy. Oh, sod it… this wind today, like God farted…   Thanks Nyk. Anyway, the song is blistering hard (acoustic) rock, highlighting both Nyk’s acute awareness of how he may be perceived, and his ability to parody it: I’m a fool ’cause I don’t play by your rules.   Anarchy in the OOTB.

Hannah O’Reilly She looks at us like a schoolmistress over her specs, then goes on to sing a song called ‘Bound,’ though there’s no dodgy stuff here. Rather, an enchanting tale of love as enthrallment, in the true sense of the world. ‘Dirty Angel’ is about rising above one’s circumstances, she’s a side show freak, but this dirt angel flies,   and named after a great compliment from a punter. Throughout, Hannah mixes original lyrical themes with a beguiling and assured stage presence, and her last, ‘Strange Friend,’ is typical of this. About a conversation with a crow, it is rich with metaphors. Hannah is masterful in mixing full voice and falsetto; light finger-picking and freefall strumming; and shifts the mood between verse and chorus with ease.

Johnny Pugh Wastes no time on stage, his first is lively and earnest, you can say these words as if they were once written by your hand… but I know this song.   Johnny starts in quiet mode, but can let rip when he wants to, and with great effect. ‘On fire’ highlights Johnny’s voice as one which is naturally full of tune and tone, annoyingly so. What a beautiful mess,   he sings to ascending chords, about a love that was. The last song manages to balance a difficult topic and not sounding trite. The bruises on you face shine in this light.   He has to muster excellent control and technique to carry it off, which he does.

Aaron Lowen Berger Aaron leaves the country tomorrow, so I can say what I like, but seriously, another fine display from the mute axeman on crowd-pleaser Last Man’s Jig. Always an inspiration for learning how to play guitar that bit better, I will miss it when he’s gone.

Rossco Galloway, Featured Act Our main man begins with ‘Fish Wife’s Tale’, which summarises perfectly Rossco’s ability to blend the familiar with the fantastical with the stuff of legend. I’m hanging round in a fish wife’s tale  . Includes tonight a beautiful intro, reserved for quieter occasions, which belies the driving beat to come. A new song follows which lilts along like a cowboy blues. Although she’s seen the world, she’s barely just a woman.   We all know one of those. ‘Pick a field tonight’ is all jazz chords over indescribable, untranslatable lyrics. I’m amazed if he knows what it’s about. Following, ‘My balance has stopped working.’ Happily the guitar hasn’t, as it follows the melody with not a note to spare. Bit like a folk psalm. ‘The Willow Tree’ is self-proclaimed Rossco folk, and a lively jig at that, dance a helter, dance a skelter  , before the chorus hits with real intensity. Reminds me of the party at the start of Lord of the Rings. ‘Love songs are ten a penny these days.’ And he doesn’t lie when he sings I wrote you eleven just to throw away,   – the man has written about 90 odd songs in all. This one is slow and restful with superb lyrics. Of love: easy to imagine, but hard to describe.   His next, ‘Iona’, talks of the island of which he is most fond, a haven in times of sin and unrest. the devil took one look and cried.   ‘Jemima and James’ is a wide-screen epic of hurt and redemption. Delivered with conviction. His last is a minor departure, with a quiet boogie/funk about trying to gain citizenship. A wide eyed man in a new world, I think I’ll pop a cork, and drink a toast to old New York.   Enjoyed the whole set immensely, and kudos to a man that can play 9 songs in 30 mins (!)

Yogi ‘Can’t go on this way’ Usually berating the world, for once Yogi turns his anger on himself, with this ultimatum of a song about opportunity lost. Not a shy man.

Colin Donati I can’t decide which I like better; his fret-work or his foot-work; as he begins with a good ol’ country song, ‘Black and White’. Unlike proper country he doesn’t lose his house, his wife, or his dog. It’s more chattering monkeys   and crocodiles. Jumanji, then. Sounds a lot like that song ‘Flowers on the Wall’. ‘Shadow in Summer’ is a very successful setting of a Norman McCaig poem to music. A minimalist arrangement which is any but straightforward, combining all sorts of time signatures effectively. Raises all sorts of questions about the authorship of a piece. ‘Various Moons’ is staccato and bare. a fading sky glows emerald green   Fine picking jazz/blues.

Nigel Ashworth, debut His first time Anywhere, apparently. Don’t know, he seems far too good for that. ‘You are’ starts with him picking a melody before he’s strumming chords up and down the neck, with great hammer-ons. About a beautiful girl. Not all schmaltz, though, as on his second he sings I know there’s no such thing as perfect love.   His finger-picking accompanies I’ve got to find the right way to love you.   ‘Curiosity’ starts soft and light, with a catchy chorus All you need is curiosity  , before getting bold and angry by the end (presumably from the gross over-use of reverb on the part of the sound-desk). Still, if this is his first time, in a couple of months from now…

Ian Petrie Making the long and arduous trip from Northumberland, Ian begins with a power ballad of sorts, ‘It comes and goes’. His soaring vox describing how it ebbs and flows.   Vocal gymnastics. ‘Steal Away’ carries on the vein of memorable melodies and a cracking counter-tenor. ‘I’ll stay by you’ New single, but one which I’ve heard before and thanks to the stupidly catchy tune, instantly recognised fondly. Great to see Ian at OOTB again.

Compere: Darren Thornberry

OOTB 287 – 7 February 2008

Performers: Nelson Wright, Aaron Lowenberger, Jonny D, Fletcher, Jim Tudor, Will Tomson, Lindsay Sugden, Mike, Jim Whyte.

Nelson Wright

Nelson plays delicate and evocative café music. Just when you are wondering if it is a touch understated or not quite perfect, you realize that you have been taken in by the lyrics and can ‘see’ the situations he is describing, so I guess the songwriting and the performance must be powerful.

His first, all about seeds is nice enough, but reminds me musically somewhat too much of ‘For Emily’ by Paul Simon.

Arty French Film is the best of the lot, the sound world reminds you of sitting in a French cafe, and you can see the film scene he is describing. It is played with considerable technique, I particularly like the part-leading where he picks out a melody that stands clear of the other picked or strummed notes. Tension is built using a prolonged tonic pedal. I have to say its nice to see how this music translates from hearing it in The Listening Room unamplified (perhaps its native environment) to being miced up and enabling us to hear every note and word.

You Really Shook My Egg, usually a great crowd-pleaser this performance was slightly short on the crowd front and short of things to shake. Note to self: bring egg.

Aaron Lowenberger

Last week’s featured act returns with a short set of his instrumental loveliness. He treats us to three tunes, in three tunings!

Uneasy Feeling, well it certainly wouldn’t have been easy for me to play, at times picking bass line, melody and inner parts all distinctly and nicely weighted. Simple techniques are put to good use such as passages in 3rds with answering phrases in 6ths.

Waiting for You; Waiting for Me, is in Drop D. Aaron creates harmonic direction with ascending scales in the bass line that just keep going up and up.

The DADGAD song. This one was much faster, and was played in the tuning of its provisional title, with lots of pull-offs. The openish tuning leant it a more bluesy feel.

Jonny D

Jonny he looks like a younger version of Billy-Joe Armstrong. He starts with a cover of knockin’ on heaven’s door  , oops didn’t someone tell him its an originals only night. So onto his second, I have to say this second song was much better, he was more confident and more at ease with his own material. Jonny has a voice that is rich and warm when he sings quietly and gets progressively more emo as he increases the volume. A solid debut performance.

Catch his material at www.myspace.com/jonnydownie

Fletcher

Amazingly this is Fletcher’s debut at OOTB, they have been a number of times but never managed to land a slot. Vocally its rock all the way, with the guitar influenced by classical/Spanish music, performance-wise Ben has a stance and attitude which mesmerise the audience, not to mention a great voice, whilst Finn sits unassumingly working subtle magic on the guitar, it’s an inspired pairing.

Down By The Riverside is a dark Edinburgh tale of a girl who turns on her attacker, only to be convicted of all his murders.

Lost Boys, inspired by Nick Drake

Tyrone Sunset

Catch them at www.myspace.com/FletcherUK

Jim Tudor

What can a reviewer say about a man who buys knitwear for his iPod?

Paper Castle, I love this songwriting – its anything but formulaic. The music has both short and longer range harmonic motion, and does not have symmetrical phrasing, but naturally follows the flow of the words. The long harmonic progressions give a more classical feel and yet there are some obvious folk progression thrown in. Altogether it has poise.

The Gambler, is Jim’s first fingerpicking song! No appologies required.

A Song from the Sea, a love song written on an overnight ferry. I’d argue that it sounds more like a sea-shanty than a love song.

Overall, its all delivered with such grace and dry wit, that its easy to miss how witty and occasionally filthy the lyrics are. More bawdy ballads please!

Will Tomson

Use to be a Good Lad

Young at Heart

Pretty on the sidelines

Words are very contemporary and on the ‘Pop’ side of life, the music all four-chord tricks and derivative. I would have preferred it with a full band and a catchier performance than in an acoustic environment. The lyrics would probably carry it with a youthful audience.

Lindsay Sugden

Beyond These Walls

She’s solo tonight, but I can hear the cello, backing vocals, and glock in my head, It’s the curse of having recorded this one my very self.

Time Stands Still

I can just hear the clocks ticking, ticking, and ticking in the background

On The Wire

Odd hearing this without ‘the band’ and mixing ott effects over everything, but the test of a great song is how it stands up naked, and it stands

The sophistication of these songs and Lindsay’s guitar is striking in contrast to the average singer-songwriter. I mean the odd chord-shape is standard, but almost every one has been crafted, perhaps its natural or perhaps she searches for what she is hearing in her head, but either way it add such depth to the songs. If only I understood what any of the lyrics meant, but then it wouldn’t be the indie chic that it is.

Lindsay has a new CD out of her music (with the Storm) as recorded at Windmill Sound, you can also catch her at www.myspace.com/LindsaySugden

Mike

Mike looks like a younger brother of Jason Wringe.

Having announced that he doesn’t do subtle, he starts with a soft jazzy number that I rather liked. All nice descending chromatic moves.

His second was Funky with a capital F. This gets more and more confident as he gets into it., More nice jazzy moves.

The last is more straight-ahead rock with a slight Spanish feel.

I think the songs and playing skills are all there, confidence will come from more performances, which we will welcome.

Jim Whyte

I Found Love

About a pet or a lover: you decide (I know what I think, even if he insists its about a rabbit). Tender and affectionate. Makes you want to give Jim a big hug.

Live Feed

Insistent high chords over a pedal, oh effect when the chords finally change is amazing. Its dying for a late entry of bass and drums to relieve the tension. Sung with such intensity that the audience is transfixed.

Slow Poke

You can just hear the band, swirling guitar chords voice dark and more menacing in this one, I daresay heavily distorted guitars threatening under the chorus.

A good set with passion, sensitivity, intensity and a great range musically.

Big Jim has a voice to break hearts, I could just leave it there… it says it all really.

Compere: Nelson Wright Sound: David O’Hara Review: Daniel Davis

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COMMENT: AUTHOR: kerry (by email) DATE: 02/15/2008 02:03:29

Have several times considered playing at this event and have several times thought better of it because of picky reviews like this. I thought the ethos of this night was to provide a supportive environment for songwriters to debut new songs, but already you are telling people what accompaniments their songs ought to have and picking things to shreds like a boring musicologist. Save your visions for your own material and let people develop at their own pace. Do you really believe that your criticism is contructive and are you in a position to give it? To previous reviewers; stop with the dull comparisons and amateur musicology. Does it float your boat or not? These are the questions worth asking and answering in music, which (remember folks) is a subjective thing.

OOTB 286 – 31 January 2008

Performers: Arran Arctic, Edvard Bredok, Simon T Munro, Tim Holehouse, Aaron Lowenberger (Featured Act), Calum Carlyle, Jonny Pugh, Broken Tooth, Ross Neilson, Angus Coull

Arran Arctic (debut) It’s a freezing cold night at the Canon’s Gait, and it’s kicked off by the appropriately named Arran Arctic, who is here for the first time. He warms up the show nicely with his Tracy Chapman Jeff Buckley lilting songs. ‘These things I Write, they grab hold and don’t let go’ he sings, and not without reason. His third song takes quite an apocalyptic turn lyrically, though I found it quite musically relaxing – an interesting juxtaposition. All this, plus an amusing comedy turn with a piece of chewing gum! If you weren’t there, you missed it! http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=609875 10

Edvard Bredok next, all the way from Norway, so I’ve probably spelled his name wrong, it’s his first time here as well. He starts off with ‘I’ll Throw My Magic at Your Soul’, a nice groovy bluegrass feel, with a voice a bit like Kevin Ayers, it’s a nice hippie number. His second song, ‘Rain’ bounces along in an upbeat Donovan Leitch kind of way with more nice bluesy fingerpicking. He finishes off with a quick retune and keeps the groove going with a toe tapper called ‘Goodbye’.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=637102 08

Simon T Munro is up next, it’s his first time here, and he starts off with a compliment and successfully gets on our good side. His first song, ‘Liquorice Lips’ is a Mike Scott meets Dylan upbeat American/Irish style folk song with plenty of sparkly guitar. Then, a very poetic song about fresh love called ‘Dance of the Summer Breeze’. He finishes with ‘Sailor, Sailor’, quipping ‘It’s about a sailor!’, it’s a nice smooth voiced folk song and I’d have liked to hear it with a few more instruments, or some backing vocals. Luckily, i might get my chance by visiting his website: http://www.myspace.com/simontmunro/ or http://www.myspace.com/simontmunro

Tim Holehouse next, another first timer. He may be the first person at OOTB to be selling 7′ singles of his music, he starts with a song called ‘Vessels That Sail in the Night’, and i find myself thinking that the song goes up and down like the waves. It’s a song about the Marie Celeste and it has six beats in the bar in the verse and ten beats per bar in the chorus! His second song, ‘A Poem About a Horse’ was dedicated to me for tipping him off about OOTB! Thanks Tim! That’s actually the first time somebody has dedicated a song to me! It has a slightly relentless beat, while still climbing over a good few highs and lows along the way. His final song’s more experimental, ‘Found Dead on the Beach’ has mainly spoken word lyrics along with Placeboesque emo guitar. Every beat and note carries weight. The audience is somewhat rapt. There’s a lovely angry indie section, there’s not enough of that these days. Listen again at: http://www.myspace.com/timholehouse

A quick break occurs during which the bar does a roaring trade, several people decide to inhale the fumes of burning plants through small paper tubes in the freezing cold, and i find out how to spell Simon T Munro’s name…

Aaron Lowenberger, Featured Act And we’re back for the featured act who’s going back to New Jersey next week so it’s a good job he’s getting to play a decent sized selection tonight. Aaron Lowenberger plays only instrumentals but he’s given all of them titles especially for tonight, which is most charming I think! Incidentally a huge number of incidental noises happen during Aaron’s set, phones, doors, scraping chairs, if a pub could have belched loudly, it would have! I thought it all added character. Anyway he begins with ‘A Break In The Clouds’, it’s a nice contemplative number, quite airy with a hint of the first breeze of autumn. His second, ‘In a Tranquil Way’ lives up to its name. Some very relaxing progressions in this one, almost like a man contemplating where to go on holiday. He explains that he started with two slow ones to give his fingers time to warm up, then launches into ‘Uneasy Feeling’, it’s a couple of gears faster and it really creates its mood, fairly through composed, like all of these pieces, it carried the listener on an uneasy journey of sorts.

His fourth song, ‘Dancing on the Head of a Pin’  has some fingerpickin’ groovy beats and harmonics. It’s a tune that almost wants to get where it’s going in a hurry, a bit like getting ready for a day out with someone you like. Fifth song (though technically it’s a tune) is ‘Catch Me if You Can’, a fingerpicking monster of a tune, it’s all over the neck! Meanwhile the bass notes conspire to take over the tune. His sixth one, ‘Waiting for You Waiting for Me’ is a happy but mournful folk instrumental which takes us on a little journey through expectations and realities. ‘How many have I got left?’ He asks, ‘hmm, a couple’, glad to hear it! Next tune is ‘Solitude’, another thinking tune with blues swirls and inquisitive dischords. He’s consistently masterful. This tune involves a reach of six frets (from the second to the seventh i think) between his thumb and pinkie! Finally, ‘The Lost Man’s Jig’, it’s a ridiculously difficult looking though composed jig with several parts and recurring themes which has everybody deedle-deedling along under their breath. Still inquisitive, still optimistic, reminds me a little of Bryan Maclean, Aaron played one section of this jig almost entirely on harmonics! I couldn’t find Aaron on the old interweb except for here: http://www.facebook.com/people/Aaron_Lowenberger/722967084 {and here (rob)… http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=564726 84 }

Calum Carlyle Next up, it’s me! I’m not going to write my own review but here’s what Rob’s written down about me: Double Decker Bus to Heaven – funk acoustic belter ‘If it’s not one thing it’s your mother’ That Weather Song – bopping little number from Melbourne whether the weather. Blues and jazz informed vox. 3rd – Brave exposed high open line, slow with drones. ‘When i saw you in the evening, rainbows in your hair’ nice open chords. http://www.myspace.com/calumcarlyle or http://www.calumsmusic.netfirms.com/

Jonny Pugh The final act of the second half, its Jonny Pugh, who’s been here once before. He starts with a loud jangly song with a hint of youthful angst. Nice to listen to, it encourages you to emote along. His voice reminds me of Graeme Mearns, which is no bad thing. His second song, ‘Nothing Less, Nothing More’, is in 3/4 time, it has smooth warm chords. ‘You’ve got to sail the rivers to get to the seas’ he sings. Dischords appear exactly where they should. His third song has truly beautiful fingerpicked chords, a bit like Dougie Maclean, it’s an atmospheric post-break-up song. Sweet guitar, bitter singing, there’s real emotion in it. http://www.myspace.com/twocarvedstones

I had to push off in the second interval so Rob’s promised to get someone else to review the third half…..

And I did it myself! (Rob)

Broken Tooth The next act brings an era to a close as the former Electric White Boy becomes Broken Tooth (shocked murmurings from the audience… a woman faints). Opens with his trademark aggressive blues singing, if hell don’t want me, gonna crawl right back to your side.   It sounds like he brought the voice back from hell with him. You don’t deserve a song,   is Tooth’s answer to the girl who dumped him. So he wrote ‘Hold Fast’ for himself, a post-break up self-help of sorts. It’s a sea shanty of a man drowning in sorrow. Evocative, it gains authenticity the more disturbed he gets. ‘Riding on the rails’ has Tooth’s heroes (Led Zep) shining through. It rocks along as he sings I mess with hobos…   Quite. This may or may not be him: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=291593 2

Ross Neilson Hmmm… nice shoes. Sorry, right, music. Ross Neilson opens with broken staccato chords on ‘Far Away Now’. His next, ‘I’ve been waiting’, which is brand new, starts falsetto. I know she’s been watching.   The mid-tempo normality hides a lyrical menace. ‘Halo’ comes with a catchy chorus. This is also hot off the press, apparently. In your minds there’s a halo.   No luck finding this guy on t’internet, sorry.

Angus Coull ‘Caribbean Dance’ is biting and twisted. Love is a disease (like MRSA), and Angus plays the desperate devotion with beautiful deadpan. This melodrama is certainly, as he puts it, better than Bathgate.   By the end, the whole orchestra on his keyboard is joining in. Great. ‘Nothing is going my way’ is a Venus fly trap as a song: vibrant and vicious. As the vitriol builds it all gets quite scary. Finishes his set and the evening with slightly happier song ‘Yes’. Or so he says. It starts like a film soundtrack and talks of giving up a girl to a better man. Quite depressing, actually. Good, though. This should be good start: http://cdbaby.com/cd/coull

OOTB 285 – 24 January 2008

Performers: Ed & Chris, John Lamb, Rob St John, Colin Milne, Lynn Sampsell, Ross Baird, Susanna, Ian Sclater, Rob Sproul-Cran, Dave O’Hara, Starship, Jim Tudor.

Apologies to ED & CHRIS, who spent nearly as much time tuning our tuneless guitars as they did playing their set. This is a very capable duo with crafty guitar interplay and a good harmony gig, but the tuning problem has them slightly off their game. OUTSKIRTS has a nice line … biding my time on the outskirts of your mind.

Where have you been all my life, JOHN LAMB? Damn, it’s good to have him back. Heads bob to the truth of NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS, CREDIT CARDS, and a class love song, SUNLIGHT ON FOREST PINE. John’s got those jazzy chords that just won’t stop.

Have I read correctly on myspace that ROB ST. JOHN is finished with gigs for the foreseeable future? Hope not. TIPPING IN is all elegant plucking. A WOODEN ROSE has my ears straining to know what this quiet singer is on about, but I know it sounds lovely. LIKE ALCHEMY speaks of leaves being drained of chlorophyll and other natural wonders. Great songs and very well received.

COLIN MILNE has made his own ‘glute’ and now plays it for us. What a treat. With such poetic and cynical lyrics, I think he must be Morrissey’s granddad or distant uncle. On the menu are weird experiences at cheap motels and dangerous lunchtime dalliances. Milne botches the third song and turns instead to Sweaty Betty  , a busty Alabama broad. Having lived in ‘Bama for 10 years, I am quite amused by this fit of stereotype. Entertaining all the way.

SQUASHEE LYNN SAMPSELL follows the glute with a bass guitar. She is joined by Chris of Ed & Chris   fame, playing guitar and singing harmony. THE ROSES is a song of bereavement. Lynn’s got a low and lovely voice, which cries out, May the beauty of the rose surround you.   Sincerely, I am touched.

FEATURED ACT: ROSS BAIRD I hear you saying the fix is in! Darren reviewing Ross? He’s sure to get a glowing report! Well, screw you ! I can’t help it, my mate and guitar legend is that good. He begins with a pair of new songs that I have not even heard yet, the second of which was finished just the day before. Ross sings, We’re still looking up to the sky with that spark in our eye, thinking, is there something else?   I detect a spiritual wondering … have to ask him about that. Ross often weaves scenes of nature and particularly islands as he serenades his past and his upbringing on Islay and Mull. These make for some of his great lines: An island’s lack of empathy is an island’s cold brutality and an island’s greatest enemy is me.   OUR BEST FRIEND, his angry   song, causes one listener to remark, That is the most beautiful angry song I’ve ever heard.   Anyhoo, Ross is a skilled guitarist, lyricist and singer, and his songs cause this writer to feel an ache, the emotion of winter, the problem of tears brimming without knowing why.

With a classical guitar and an admitted case of nerves, SUSANNA lets loose a torrent of folk songs and a very interesting vocal style. Words about shipwrecks get lost in a delicate vibrato. Second song is a cappella, nice, gutsy, and feels particularly traditional. I crave one kiss from your cold clay lips.   ATTIC, she’s alone there, memories filling up boxes and guitar chords not forming exactly as she plans. A quality showing nonetheless.

IAN SCLATER. A squashee who always manages to get in two songs. It’s a spell he casts over the compere. He plays my favourite of his songs, BACK ON THE GOOD EARTH. From a rock opera in waiting, the gorgeous line, I have written your name in the red dust of Mars/I have blown you a kiss from the moon   makes me wonder if I’m ground control or Major Tom. THIS TIME AROUND is a country song written by someone who hates country.   The result is something perhaps not quite inspired, but lyrically clever and catchy anyway.

Our humble compere ROB SPROUL-CRAN now does something I’ve never witnessed. He’s written a song while Ross was playing, and now he performs it, having had no time to pick up a guitar or give it a good sing. It’s something to do with death. I saw you cryin’ the day he died.   It’s rather tender in that Rob way. I want to hear this one again soon. Well done sir!

Soundman extraordinaire DAVID O’HARA sets up and I can’t resist starting the Radio Gaga/David O’Hara chant. I get a death stare from him and feel satisfied in my work. His Arabian Nights   standard hushes the room and is followed by a new number called Two Tunes.   It is a pleasure to see and hear him writing new stuff and getting it out there.

STARSHIP! Not the horrific 80s incarnation of Jefferson Starship, but tonight’s moniker for Nyk Stoddart. He’s in the vault with a couple of class songs he’s not played here in six months, then finishing with Another Song.   This of course used to be called Ming Mong   or something like that. I’m an idiot, I’m a fool, cause I don’t play by your rules.   No he certainly does not, and we should all be glad.

JIM TUDOR plays the first song he wrote when moving to the Burgh four months ago. It’s called PAPER CASTLE, and it’s so good. His voice is a cottony cavern. I don’t exactly know what I mean by that, but it’s meant to imply depth and good tone. THE GIRL WITH A TWINKLE IN HER EYE is about a flash in the pan, a one-night stand that changed his life. He croons, The flash was nice, but the rash got out of hand.   Yikes!

OOTB 284 – 17 January 2008

Performers: Hannah O’Reilly, Susanna MacDonald, Callum Carlyle, Freeloadin Frank, Hugh Man, Tone (featured act), Ian Sclater, Ed and Chris, Dave, Johnny Pugh, Calum Haddow, Aaron Lowen Berger.

‘Twas a fine winter’s night to be venturing forth to the Canon’s Gait and many of Edinburgh’s musicians seemed to think this was true as the list filled up thick and fast. Alas, despite so many there appeared to be few willing to brave the challenge that faces the OOTB reviewer. However, for the first part I decided it was time to be a worthy citizen and give something back to the community. Ably aided and abetted by Ms Hannah O’Reilly read on to discover how our perilous journey unfolded before us (until the second break when we buggered off). I want to add at this point the disclaimer that I cannot be held responsible for any mis-quoted lyrics (you should sing more clearly), omitted or mis-quoted song titles (you should make them more obvious) or mis-spelled names (if I’ve not read them how am I supposed to know). We have also tried to be fairly honest and our mothers always told us that if you can’t say something nice then you shouldn’t say anything at all (oops, that means I shouldn’t really sing any of my songs. Ah well, hypocrisy makes life more bearable…). As a reward, we were given the first slot to share, and, delightfully compered by Mr Daniel Davis,

Hannah O’Reilly

Hannah took to the stage. Her first offering was Foolish   in which she sang that she was ‘foolishly fooled by you again’ to a descending strummed riff in an open tuning. This was a song which showed off the more gentle and delicate side to Hannah’s voice and though she claimed that she should have warmed up with a different song the audience was suitably wowed. Then, after a minor coughing fit and a brief snippet from her latest song about not being able to write a song (‘I hate this song, I hate this song, I hate this song…’ I think the lyrics were), she launched into Faith  . This song had a mixture of picking and strumming on her guitar and she sang of ‘Faith: the final frontier’. A very strong and laid-back performance set the evening off to a great start.

Next it was me and you’ll have to get that write-up off Rob…

Susanna MacDonald I thought she said her first was called ‘Buddha the Cyborg’, and I’m more than a little disappointed to realise it’s called ‘Buddha on the Sideboard’. Let’s face it; it would have to be pretty good to trump my expectations of Dalai Lama/Bishop from Aliens   as song. As it happens, Susanna more than makes up for it with an engaging tale of domestic strife, details beautifully picked out with sustained 2nds and 6ths, broken by staccato accents. ‘To the critics’ makes my seat a difficult one to occupy as Susanna rails against all those who presume to comment and advise on matters they have little knowledge of. It is acerbic and powerful, and despite perhaps forwarding the untenable position of a performer whose work is only scrutinised by the knowing few, I rather enjoyed it. Back to Susanna…

I was followed by Callum Carlyle who promised a set of ‘frantic songs that I don’t usually play’. He made no apology for ancient strings as he was confident he could ‘make them sound beautiful’. We weren’t so sure however, but his sheer exuberance and energy he put into playing made up for it. He started with I Have Faith In You   with funky strumming and very positive lyrics, which makes a great change from a lot of songwriters (I put my hands up in shame). This had thigh-slapping and bopping from the audience. Next it was a song called Brief Ray of Sunshine  , a song 15 years old that has ‘never really been taken out of the box’. There were a lot of rhythm changes in this one and jumps from riff-changes to strumming and it did feel a little under-rehearsed as to make songs like this flow properly you really need to have confidence in the changes (again hands up as my second offering was much the same tonight). I couldn’t really hear the lyrics properly as they came thick and fast, but again it was a very optimistic offering about an ‘ideal woman’ seen in the moonlight. Finally Callum gave us Superglue  , a song with very heavy strumming of power chords and more than a little reminiscent of Placebo. Though for sheer exuberance give the man a prize…

Ah, now to the next performer and a veteran at OOTB, a man who really needs no introduction and whose musical style is an experience: Mr Freeloading Frank. His first is a ‘serious song’, qualified by an open tuning and finger-picking. He has trouble knowing which way is up and down. A ‘rich man sitting at his desk… don’t care about the rest’ as he Frank delves investigates the implications of investing in the weapons trade. This is the more reflective, sombre side of Frank and the open tuning gave and Indian twinge to the bridge passage. Where was the sitar? To move things on quickly Frank swapped his guitar and told us about a public health meeting on Monday to legalise cannabis. He then started what can be best described as a ‘ditty’ entitled Cannabis is very good for you  . Stacked full of witty catchy rhymes this had the audience positively chortling as he told us it was good for ‘you and you and you and you and you and you and you…’, apparently written to prove he can write more serious songs. He then had to loosen his wrist after all the finger-picking to start a love song with country-esque strumming which imagined what would happen if he were a number of professions, with the most memorable for me being ‘If I was a priest I’d tell everyone what you said in confession’. Frank is a very clever lyricist and enjoyable for that.

Then we had Hugh Man who proclaimed that when it comes to the state of the world that Sometimes I Just Don’t Get It   before launching head first into a frantic diatribe about, well, the state of the world, I suppose. He asked ‘Is there something wrong with me?’. He did seem a little nervous and I thought the song would be better conveyed if he relaxed a bit, but OOTB’s quiet audiences can be very nerve-racking for some performers (where was my hand again? Oh yes, in the air confessing to the same thing). The song finished effectively abruptly. His second song was a new one, apparently more melancholy and reaching into the ‘spiritual realms’ about a ‘war of dark and light going on and some people might not know it’. This had gentle strumming in E minor as he told us ‘Every shadow must be cast by a shining light’ and that ‘Our self respect is everything’. He was more relaxed in this one. He finished with A Little Bit of Harmony   which switched to E major and sang that ‘A little bit of harmony can take away the misery’. There were a lot of lyrics and I couldn’t catch many of them but he certainly sang as if he meant every one of them. Hugh’s songs are quite long though, which at an open mic can seem rather self-indulgent, especially as the audience are not really geared up for watching one act for a very long time (except the featured act). A competent set none-the-less.

Now we have reached our featured act for the evening, Tone. He prefers to sit and gaze up into the mic and is joined on stage for his first number by Josh on the sax. He speaks to us first in French (something about a petit champignon and that il fait chaud, I became suspicious that he had been studying a standard grade/GCSE textbook before coming to play) before assaulting into a catchy quirky picked chord riff where ‘Time flows by as in bed I lie’ and ‘the streetlights are out of sight’. Fantastic jazzy sax let us know we were in for a good half hour of music. Actually catchy, quirky and fantastic are the words I think best describe his whole set. With a gentle, almost spoken, laid-back vocal, reminiscent at times of Finlay Quay, a higher-pitched Leonard Cohen who can actually sing or, more frequently, Evan Dando and the Lemonheads he took us through almost virtuoso guitar playing with high ‘oohs’ in Too Much For The Mind   and Wildebeast  , where ‘No one speaks to you, scared of what you might do’ (and uses the ‘oohs’ to create a vocal that recalls The Lion Sleeps Tonight  ) , to Feel No Need  , where a slow melody contrasted brilliantly with a fast-paced picked guitar counter melody accompaniment reminiscent of Beethoven. Then he moved onto a new one never played in public before. His guitar had gone out of key, but that didn’t matter too much as it was quite a country song and added a honky-tonk effect. The he donned a harmonica to play Terry Nutkins  , a homage to an 80s TV star. The harmonica line sounded like Come On Sweet Caroline   before he sang ‘Like animals are to Terry Nutkins my vocation is you’ (see what I mean about quirky?). Then he returned to his virtuoso blue-grassy guitar before his final song. He asked tentatively about covers which resulted in a resounding hiss from the crowd so resolved to do another original (yay!). With an Aussie outback like ‘bong’ on the guitar he told of a rather bad relationship where ‘She played games with my aching brain, that’s why you’ve got me on the run’. And with an ‘ay’, an ‘oh’, a ‘no’ and a ‘sssh’ he ended a mighty fine set that was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

We were then presented with three ‘squashees’ as my arguments with adjectives and complaints with comparisons that comprise writing the review began to draw toward the final battle. Firstly Ian Sclater, who, aghast with no covers, told us that he’s tired of ‘being a pale imitation of Donovan’ and as most of his songs are written for a band he brought his own backing track to play along to. Ian has a good voice and he crooned to a song that can only be described here as ‘classic rock’ saying you’ve got to ‘Talk to Somebody’ (I also assume this is the song’s title) and ‘Don’t hide away’.

Then Ed and Chris came. Apparently last week was their first public performance. They sounded new and fresh and played Heart of my Existence   had possibly the best lyric I’d heard all night with ‘Existence is spread so very thin upon the rocks like moss and lichen’. These guys sing with Scottish accents, with perfect applied harmonies, two guitars and are going to be so very good very soon. They are laid back and do remind you a bit of Idlewild. Definitely keep an eye on them.

And then the last performer before the second break, Dave. Very politely thanked us for fitting him into our schedule before singing a gently picked love song. Though he said ‘Seven worlds will collide whenever I am by your side’ it was not the Crowded House song. He seemed really nervous, and sang to the mic, but still gave a very heart-felt and decent performance.

Rob again… Johnny Pugh (debut) This debutante launches into ‘Loose Ends’, a familiar tale of loss, he sings ‘Where are you when all these pieces fall into place?’ By the third verse, though, Johnny pushes it up a nocth, and the lyrics are wrenched from within, dripping with emotional rage. He has great control of dynamics on his second, called either ‘Lost without you’ or ‘Waiting for you’ (I’ll learn the title next time round) It reminds me of he whose name shall never be uttered in open mic circles (don’t know why), Damien Rice. Good stuff, though. ‘Let go’ opens as slow stadium guitar rock, and another tale of loss. Surprisingly, all this mourning wasn’t in the least bit depressing, testament to the delivery. This too gathers momentum, as he sings I let you go, and my love she turns to hate.   This may be his first OOTB, but clearly he’s done this before. Hopefully not the last time here.

Calum Haddow welcomes the many OOTB virgins in the audience with his most poptastic and accessible tunes, ‘Death to the Animals.’ What, seriously? No, everyone looks on in a state of disbelief as Calum delivers with absolute conviction such gems as tear him to bits; I’ll cheer you on  , and there’s a death stink around your head.   Nature, red and tooth and claw, sung with the ferocity of a rabid marmot. I loved it. ‘A simple plan to destroy the court(s)’ details one man’s quest against The Man as anything but a theoretical matter: we’ll suffocate them where they stand.   Powdered wigs as choking hazard, who’d have thought? This song also features the most masterful recovery of a plectrum this reviewer has ever witnessed. I don’t know what happened, but it looked like something out the Matrix. ‘First Aid’ is a personal favourite, although I’ve never seen Calum himself sing it. Behind the humour of an incompetent medic lies a harsh war song. We will both be walking out, I swear   And when Calum yells, Stand up, get up…   the impact is total.

Aaron Lowen Berger Master of the instrumental opens with a soft and mellow one. Reminds me of ‘You’ve got a friend’ but Aaron never slips into melodic cliché. His second, ‘Overdoing it’ is a funky blues that does what it says, this stuff is not easy, and Aaron clearly relishes the challenge of a piece which is difficult in so many ways. Picking, fret stretches and speed all add up to a work-out, but Aaron copes capably. Incidentally, this guy is the Featured Act in two weeks (31/01/08), so come enjoy before the boy disappears back to New Jersey forever.