The Girl Effect

On Saturday night I headed through to Edinburgh as my sister Carla, singer and songwriter in TeenCanteen,  celebrated her 30th birthday by putting on an incredible show in aid of Scottish Women's Aid.

Indie legends like Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), Duglas T Stewart (BMX Bandits), Eugene Kelly (The Vaselines) were included in the line-up that also featured TeenCanteen, Machines In Heaven, Broken Records, Flash Talk, No More Tiger and The Spook School.

The aim of the night was relatively simple;

• each act was asked to cover 2-songs by girl groups and had a maximum of 10-minutes
• the night was to raise funds for Scottish Women's Aid
• all acts, the venue, tech staff etc etc gave up their time for free

Could my sister really pull this off? An incredible 14-acts in the stunning Summerhall, all the changeovers, tech issues and timings...

The answer, as anyone who was there will testify, was a resounding yes. Everyone embraced the spirit of the night, creating a positive atmosphere from the off that only increased as the night went on.

There was a large queue snaking down the stairs waiting for the doors to open at 7pm sharp and at 7.20pm Carla, Megan from Scottish Women's Aid and the poet Jenny Lindsay told us about the acts playing and the aims of the night and we were off.

It would be impossible to do the night justice, but a full list of the acts and songs covered is noted below. The range of pop music from the 60's through to the present day was fantastic, I thoroughly enjoyed the choice of songs and the way bands stamped their own authority on them.

I would personally like to say thanks and well done to everyone involved in the night - it was brilliant to be part of - like a mini-festival and it raised some much needed money for Scottish Women's Aid.

Thanks to Kat Gollock Photography for the pictures.

The GT's - Chains by The Cookies, Tell Me Baby Why You've Been Gone So Song - Brenda Lee and Jessi Coulter

2 guys in black suits playing acoustic guitars (one of them formerly in OMD) opened proceedings. Their startling ability on the guitars was mesmerising. They extended the songs to use their full 10-minutes, jamming on in glorious fashion.

Bodyheat - I Never Dreamed by The Cookies, We Got The Beat by The Go-Go's

The beautiful flow of I Never Dreamed was an early highlight of the night and a song I'll be tracking down.

Machines In Heaven - Bills, Bills, Bills by Destiny's Child, Nowhere To Run by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas

A huge pulsating electro riff ushered in the second song by Machines In Heaven with singer Davie using a vocoder. The melody sounded familiar - this was the classic Nowhere To Run being modernised and sounding absolutely amazing. I hope they record it.

Photo by Kat Gollock

Henry and Fleetwood - Fortunately Gone by The Breeders, Manic Monday by The Bangles

Manic Monday was another highlight of the evening for me with many around me singing along. The combination of bass and synth and male and female vocals was very enjoyable.

Golder Arm - Walk Like An Egyptian by The Bangles, Your Kisses Are Wasted On Me - The Pipettes

Goldern Arm got the crowd going with a romp through another Bangles song before getting the crowd to clap along with the pure pop rush of The Pipettes.

Flash Talk - Freak Like Me/I Love Rock n Roll by Sugababes/Joan Jett, Push It/Cherry Bomb by Salt n Pepa/The Runaways

Flash Talk really got the crowd going; using their full 10-minute allocation and musical excellence to mash up some classic girl group songs - pop, rock, rap and punk. 

Duglas T Stewart with Norman Blake - That Lonely Feeling by The McKinleys, Nobody Knows What's Going On In My Mind by The Chiffons

A brilliant performance from Mr Stewart, tugging on the heartstrings with his opener before going full on garage with the closer.

Raffle - we then had a raffle with some superb prices generously donated by the acts on offer. Duglas and Norman stayed on to help draw the raffle.

 Photos by Kat Gollock

Stanley Odd - Really Saying Something/Doin' The Do by The Velvettes/Betty Boo, Honey by TeenCanteen

Dave Hook (Solareye) had been bounding around the crowd with a huge grin on his face all night and it transferred to the crowd when he took to the stage. Veronika on vocals sang beautifully over a sample of The Velvettes with Hook adding some smart comeback lines before coming in with a brilliant rap about girl groups, the band then threw in a bit of Betty Boo for good measure, much to the delight of the crowd.

Hook was then extremely generous in his praise of the next song; introducing it as an incredible pop song by a girl group we might have heard of.

I was delighted when he announced it was Honey by TeenCanteen and it was brilliant to hear Stanley Odd remain pretty true to the original but just add their own twist on it, turning it into a duet and ad libbing at the end.

A superb performance.

Photo by Kat Gollock

No More Tiger - I Can Hear Music by The Ronettes, I Love How You Love Me by The Paris Sisters

Two gorgeous covers, the first song in particular was a favourite of mine from the night.

Photo by Kat Gollock

Jenny Lindsay - A girl group poem made up of girl group lyrics suggested by the audience

Co-compere Jenny invited the audience to write their favourite girl group lyrics down and then she somehow assembled them into a poem full of humour. Very clever.

The Spook School - Gimme Brains by Bratmobile, I Love It by Icona Pop

The Spook School look like they are still at school. Their delicious punk pop romp through the modern pop classic I Love It was brilliant, causing a spot of pogo-ing. The band looked like they were having loads of fun on stage.

Broken Records - Stop In The Name of Love by The Supremes, Modern Girl by Sleater Kinney

Carla and Sita from TeenCanteen joined Broken Records for a soaring version of The Supremes classic before the band enjoyed toying and playing with the beautiful riffs of Sleater Kinney. Both songs were exceptional from a band oozing with confidence.

Photo by Kat Gollock

Eugene Kelly with TeenCanteen - My Boyfriend's Back by The Angels, Never Ever by All Saints

TeenCanteen played backing band to Eugene Kelly who was allowed to show that his love of pop ranged from The Angels through to All Saints. The extended version of Never Ever was quite brilliant.

Photo by Kat Gollock

TeenCanteen with Eugene Kelly and Dave Hook from Stanley Odd - Say My Name by Destiny's Child, Waterfalls by TLC, Be My Baby by The Ronettes

A huge cheer greeted TeenCanteen and Carla as she told us the night will have raised well over £3,000 for Scottish Women's Aid with the final total to be announced on Monday.

I imagine it will be more like £4,000+ based on ticket sales, the raffle (they sold out of tickets) and the glitter table manned by Sita and Chloe from TeenCanteen who loved painting people's faces all night.

The closing two songs in particular were exceptional. Solareye from Stanley Odd joined the band for the rap in Waterfalls - a gloriously beautiful pop song.

Carla's voice (which she was really worried about due to doing so much work for the event) sounded absolutely incredible on Be My Baby with the crowd singing along in style. It was a brilliant version of a truly amazing song.

A happy Carla watching Stanley Odd cover her song Honey

Photos by Kat Gollock

TeenCanteen presents The Girl Effect for Scottish Women's Aid

My sister Carla is the singer and songwriter in the band TeenCanteen and she has decided to organise a rather special night for her birthday this year in aid of Scottish Women's Aid.

Artists including Scottish indie legends Eugene Kelly (The Vaselines) and Duglas T Stewart (BMX Bandits) along with up and coming artists like Machines In Heaven, Flash Talk, Solareye and Henry and Fleetwood, will be covering songs of their choice by girl groups.

All artists have donated their time for free, as has the venue and technicians working on the show. So fingers crossed a lot of money is raised for Scottish Women's Aid. CLICK FOR TICKETS

Eugene Kelly has already confirmed he will be covering the All Saints classic Never Ever! Surely worth the £10 admission fee alone!

TeenCanteen have also confirmed that the songs Modern Girl by Sleater Kinney, the classic Nowhere To Run by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Freak Like Me by the Sugababes and the still incredible Push It by Salt n Peppa will be covered on the night.

But by whom..... you'll need to go to find out.

I caught up with my sister to find out why this event is so special to her and to hear about her love of girl groups ranging from the 50's through to present day.

 1) Why are you holding The Girl Effect in aid of Scottish Women’s Aid? 

On the 2nd May I turn 30 this year (sorry to disappoint any TC fans - TeenCanteen is a way of life and not an age) and I am really looking forward to entering the next decade of my life. I'm excited about it! I feel like I've been stuck in my twenties forever.

As happy as I am about turning thirty, this year also marks it being 15 years since my Dad passed away. He passed away on 9th May exactly a week after I turned 15. I'm sad he hasn't seen the kind of person that I've turned out to be and often wonder what he would have thought of the choices I've made in life. For me turning thirty is cause for celebration, but it's also time for me to shut the door on feeling this way and move on. Because I'm sure his passing has greatly affected the choices I've made and the person I'm turning out to be. I wanted to do something for my thirtieth that was positive, that took my mind off negative feelings and promoted the things I believe in. I wanted the 9th May to be a date to look forward to and not one to dread. 

That's the personal reason...

The main reason.

I'd love to live in a world where organisations such as Scottish Women's Aid - wonderful as they are - don't need to exist because as a society we had managed to end gender inequality and we'd been able to treat and stop the causes of domestic abuse.

I hope that one day such a society will exist because I have two beautiful nieces that I want to grow up believing they can achieve anything they want without fear or prejudice. Until such a world exists I feel I should do my part to try and get it there. 

Scottish Women's Aid mission statement - to end violence against women by tackling its root cause, which is gender inequality. SWA do amazing work to ensure that services and support are available across Scotland for women, young people and children with experience of domestic abuse - both physical and psychological - their work is vital. Scottish Women's Aid promote women's equality and children's rights and campaign for responses which actively prevent violence against women. They provide safe spaces - whether that be living spaces or online spaces - for women to share and communicate, seek help and get support

2) How did you choose the acts on the bill? 

I've been lucky to play alongside a lot of bands that have become friends over the years. When organising an event like this you don't know who is going to say YES to playing - you ask and find out. I couldn't belive the overwhelming response from everyone I asked. My inbox filled up with YES.

It's a lot to ask - 'can you learn new songs, come and play Edinburgh and oh, by the way, can you do all this for free?' I wouldn't say I 'chose' the bands - I didn't deem one band worthy of asking over another. I just asked those whom I thought would share my same enthusiasm for, what has become, a project. Those who I knew I could work well with. There wasn't a back up plan in case everyone said no. 

Chloe, Debs, Carla and Sita - TeenCanteen

Photo by Kat Gollock

It was important to me to have a varied bill of bands - it makes for a more exciting evening. I have no idea what any of the performances will be like - that's a big part of the appeal - the anticipation. I can tell you that all the bands involved were asked because I have seen them live and thought they were sonically brilliant in their own individual ways. Throw in some Destiny's Child and (inevitably) glitter face paint courtesy of our bass player Sita - I know it'll be an exciting night. It'll be fun, hectic, we'll all be running around the place, I'm sure someone will forget a guitar lead or a keyboard stand and some of us might be singing off of sheets of paper - I CAN'T WAIT.


3) Can you remember the first girl group you heard and were into? What attracted you to them? 

I can't remember what the first ever girl- group record was that I ever listened to. At all. I can only assume from my age that it must have been Bananarama. I significantly remember Shakespears Sister and Shampoo being on Top of The Pops. I remember Eternal but I didn't want to be in Eternal or emulate them in anyway. I was never a fan of their songs. I'll never forget the first time I saw The Spice Girls - they were so amazingly scruffy in the Wannabe video - so thrown together. I didn't so much as think of them as a girl group but as a girl gang. I wanted a gang! It looked like a lot of fun.

I'll never forget the day I first heard Arlene Smith's (The Chantels) sublime vocal burst out of my record player on the song He's Gone. I think I was 19. Her voice soared out of my speakers and epitomised heartbreak. She's one of the best female vocalists and songwriters of the last century. Or the first time I heard Mr Lee by The Bobbettes, a young and feisty girl group -  whoops and hollers of girlish delight from girls aged between 12 and 15 singing about a crush on their teacher.

I've been fortunate to witness Ronnie Spector sing live at The Arches when we went in 2009. The audience was full of young and old. Women, men, girls and boys. At one point we were standing next to an older couple who were hugging each other and crying. Ronnie was singing Be My Baby. I asked the couple why they were crying. They said to me 'it's the sound of our teenage years.' Have you ever heard anything so beautiful in your life?'

I looked at Ronnie on stage. Frail and sitting down, but still with masses of hair piled high on her head, war paint red lipstick and magic marker eyeliner singing straight from the heart.

I hadn't heard anything so gloriously youthful and universal in my life.

4) You know some of the songs that groups are covering; can you share them with us? 

Everything is under wraps other than those mentioned above. 

5) Finally could you tell us about 7 of your favourite girl group songs and why you like them? 

SO HARD TO PICK!

I'll go for Top 10 Girl Group songs I just simply couldn't live without:

1. The Cookies - Don't Say Nothing Bad About My Baby - The Cookies are my number one favourite ever girl group. I love Earl Jean's voice, it's like an iron fist in a velvet glove. This song is what spurred me onto my life consuming girl group obsession. I couldn't belive what I was hearing when I put the needle on the record. It changed my life forever. 

2. The Chantels - He's Gone - as mentioned before. Quite simply breathtaking. Unbelievable harmonies. Unbelievable lead. Gorgoues melodies.

3. Honey Cone - The Day I Found Myself - Darlene Love's kid sisters band. They were amazing! Holland Dozier Holland wrote a lot for them. The brass on this is phenomenal. Classic sisteryly advice song. 

4. The Jewels - Opportunity - Fantastic piano intro, girl gang hand claps. Great bass vocal harmony and bounces along with so. Much. Sass. 

5. The Blossoms - Good Good Lovin - A great classic love song. I love the delicious 'oooohs' when they come in. Not so much a girl group as sounding like a woman group. Sultry pop. 

6. Laura Nyro and LaBelle - I Met Him On A Sunday - Laura Nyro is perhaps my favourite songwriter and singer of all time. Gloriously mental arrangements. She has a habit of taking her songs into places you just weren't expecting them to go. This is her cover version of 'I Met Him On A Sunday' featuring girl group Labelle. I think it was recorded in her flat? It's so joyful when it all kicks in. 

7. The Fuzz - Leave It All Behind - One album in 1971 ' The Fuzz'. One of the first popular recordings to feature female spoken word. A lot of written by Sheila Young. I wish there had been more albums. 

8. The Cinderellas - Baby Baby I Still Love You - Quite simply I think this is one of the best pop song recordings ever. It has everything I need

9. The Bobbettes - Um Bow Bow - mentioned them above. They had a habit of writing nonsensical lyrics. But they ALL make sense to me. I still can't get over how young they were. 

10. The Ikettes - It's Been So Long - I love Northern Soul as much as I love girl groups. Well, not as much. It's maybe my second favourite genre! This ticks both boxes. I found this on a Kent compilation a while back. Me and my friend Jenna used to play this a lot back in the days when we used to DJ together. 

Wickerman Festival 2013 - a review

Wickerman 2013 was ushered in by blazing sunshine and the first sold out event in the festivals history.

We arrived on site a little late at around 4pm on the Friday and had soon pitched our tent and sparked a beer before meeting friends Gordon and Alana.

We had a wander into the site and up to the Solus Tent to see Solar Eye but swiftly decided that Scottish hip-hop isn't our thing, so we caught the last of Dreadzone on the main stage; their dub, reggae house combination sounded pretty damn good in the glorious sunshine.

We helped (or at least Lynn did) Gordon and Alana pitch their tent (thankfully we have a pop up one) and then went back on site to catch some of Admiral Fallow who sounded majestic when they got into full flow.

The first highlight of the day was Machines In Heaven, surely one of the most improved outfits in Scotland right now. It has been a long road for Graeme and Greg, but their patience in finding their sound and line-up has paid off and their dreamy electro soundscapes sounded delicious in the Solus Tent.

KT Tunstall gathered a huge crowd at the main stage and we caught some of her set in between visits to the VIP bar that is conveniently situated right next door. She even dropped a wee bit of the White Stripes 'Seven Nation Army' into her set.

Friday was all about two acts for me though (no offence to the others). First up were Chic featuring Niles Rodgers and they did not disappoint. I got lost in the music, just dancing and singing along to hit after hit. 'Thinking Of You' by Sister Sledge became my song of the weekend, I still can't get it out of my head.

Niles Rodgers was coolness personified, striding around the stage in a resplendent white suit and shades, playing a unique mix of lead/rythm guitar. Their set was only 1-hour long, far too short. They ended with 'Le Freak' to huge cheers and a whole load of people on stage dancing with them.

Darkness fell and Primal Scream took to the stage, blitzing the audience with '2013' the opening track from their latest album. The song is full of energy that belies the Scream's years. The hits like; 'Country Girl', 'Jailbird', 'It's Alright, It's OK' (again off the new album) and 'Rocks' generated a brilliant response from the crowd. A welcome burst of 'Shoot Speed/Kill Light' was a real highlight.

There is a time and a place for new songs; '2013' and 'It's Alright, It's OK' are up with anything the Scream have recorded, however 3 or 4 other songs off the new album are not - certainly not when you are headlining a festival. So the mood in the crowd noticeably dipped during tracks like 'Tenement Kid'.

'Loaded' was a riot and the version of 'Come Together' was euphoric. I just wish that the Sceram had played a full set worthy of the title; festival headliners, as they certainly have enough material in their back catalogue.

The night ended with dancing in the silent disco and at an open stage DJ bar before we fell into the tent around 1.30am and kept the doors open chatting to the strains of the music in the distance. A top day.

Saturday morning was hazy and lazy. The sunshine warmed our tent to the extent that we had to get up even though we could have done with another couple of hours sleep. So we wandered on to the site with Gordon and Alana and grabbed some breakfast and newspapers from the shop and then headed back for a lazy couple of hours snoozing in the sun.

Acts we caught on the Saturday;

The Recovery - not through choice, the Recovery brought their heavy metal show to Wickerman as the guitarist and singer walked outside of the Solus Tent to play to the crowd at the food stalls. The Recovery may have cleared a few hangovers and not helped some others!

Roddy Hart & the Lonesome Fire -  Roddy's mix of ballads and up temp numbers went down well with the large crowd who were settling in front of the main stage and on the hill for the day. I personally preferred the more upbeat stuff that really showcased the sound his very talented 7-piece band could create. Roddy is a tremendous talent and well worth checking out.

Vasa - are managed by a lovely guy called Gerry Blythe who has put on some great nights in Glasgow (including booking Nevada Base and Vigo Thieves) and he has great taste in music. Vasa are from the Mogwai school of rock and their musical ability sounded way beyond their age (they look pretty young). They could build from a pin drop into a ferocious noise and their bassist impressed. Tight!

Lulu James - Looked and sounded brilliant - real festival act, capable of getting the crowd in the mood and generating a real groove at times.

Bellowhead - I was actually in the media village at the side of the stage when Bellowhead played to a huge crowd and they generated a massive conga - good festival fun!

Dexys - I love Dexys and was pleased to see Kevin Rowland and co pull a big crowd. Kevin looked great and the band ran through a mix of material from their comeback album and old classics. I only stayed for the first 4 songs as I was heading to see...

Vigo Thieves - Vigo Thieves smashed T in the Park and their good form improved even further at Wickerman at the Solus Tent, they really nailed it and impressed everyone there. The set is super tight;

'Steal Your Heart' set the tone, big guitars and choruses 'stay young in your heart and your in your mind' with the crowd singing along. 'Blood Red' kept the tempo up and Stevie Jukes was already down in amongst the crowd, vibing off their passion and energy.

'Believe' was epic, it is just a huge song that others can only dream of writing, it is another positive message - make no mistake, they believe and more and more people are starting to believe with them.

'Steal Your Heart Pt II' slowed things down and it sends a tingle down my spine every time I hear it. It contains my favourite lyric that Stevie has written (to date) and it gets me every time.

You're looking for the love to heal the pain from all the scars

So live for the moment and you'll shine like the stars

'Ghosts' was a riot with the band selecting a fan to play air saxaphone as their guest sax player was away on holiday, before 'Heartbeats' closed an epic set.

The band play the Arches on 7th September - get your tickets HERE

Nevada Base at the Captain's Rest, Glasgow, 10/12/11

Nevada Base surfaced from months of studio time at the weekend with a Christmas show at Captain’s Rest. The band who released their debut single ‘Love In My Mind’ earlier in the year now have over and albums worth of material recorded and intend to release their music in various forms over the next year leading up to an album.

You can get new song ‘An Avenue’ as a free download by signing up to the Nevada Base mailing list at http://www.nevadabase.co.uk/

But back to Saturday night. Support came from DJ Gerry Blythe (New Life) who played at the start, between bands and afterwards. I hadn’t met Gerry before but he came across as a lovely guy with a fantastic taste in music and I asked him about a few of the tracks he played. I will DEFINITELY be buying the soundtrack to Drive very soon.

The fist band were Machines In Heaven and they played a sublime set with singer and guitarist Graham Crossan conjuring up some sweet melodies, vocally and via his guitar. Check out their track Sub-E, dedicated to the bass speakers in the Sub Club HERE.

Next up were Crash Club from Kilwinning whom Nevada Base pinched their young drummer from, so it was only right that they should offer them a support slot in return! Crash Club picked up the pace from Machines In Heaven and went at it full pelt for 25-minutes. The front man had a swagger and a sneer that captivated many, whilst the bass player kept the groove that allowed guitars, synths and effects to go mental. The crowd loved it.

Nevada Base strode confidently on to the stage and went straight into old favourite ‘Electric Touch’. There were smiles all round as the crowd danced and sang along. Old songs mixed easily with new; ‘Crisis’ was a highlight, as was the sublime ‘Kisses Her Bullets’ with an extended instrumental intro and the hook ‘the stars, the stars, she shoots at the stars.’

The addition of Calum Muir (below) on drums has really beefed up the live sound, the fact he is a handsome and cheeky young blonde 21-year old won’t escape many females attention.

One new song had a reggae/dub feel at the start before morphing off into synth led euphoria and ‘Love In My Mind’ and ‘If I’m Late’ went down well as always. There was no encore, the band eager to look ahead to 2012 and leaving their fans eager for the next gig.