The SAY Award shortlist

The Scottish Album of the Year Award (the SAY Award) has been a welcome addition to the Scottish music and arts scene since its inception; highlighting the quality and diversity that our nations artists create year on year and provoking debate about what albums should make the shortlist and of course; who should win.

The ten albums on the shortlist are noted below; the fact that the likes of King Creoste with his critically acclaimed From Scotland With Love, Withered Hand with his brilliant New Gods and The Twilight Sad with their most acclaimed album of their career, haven't made the shortlist has already created heated debate amongst Scottish music fans.

Little known acts like Happy Meals are on there - I have really fallen for their album since wondering who the hell they were when they popped up on the long list.

Let's see who is on the shortlist - in no particular order;

Last years winners Young Fathers are shortlisted again with Dead. They won with a mini-album/mixtape last year that created a heated debate regardless of the quality. The band followed that up by winning the Mercury Music Prize and have been gathering incredible critical acclaim and a growing fanbase.

The band are fiercely independent, prolific and are developing a reputation for fierce live performances. Dead has already won the Mercury - can they do the double? They may well be back on the shortlist again in 2016 with their latest album White Men Are Black Men Too.

The Amazing Snakeheads Amphetamine Ballads sent them careering around the globe causing havoc with their energy and passion. They imploded in February this year to the dismay of many.

Will their sole release win them the SAY Award? It's a menacing album mixing all kinds of stuff - The Doors crossed with punk, rock n roll and jazz at times - as evidenced on Flatlining below.

I caught them at the Wickerman Festival last summer and they were sensational live. They wouldn't be my own personal choice but would be popular with many.

Kathryn Joseph is someone I can see winning the award. Appearing from nowhere with a beautiful Vic Galloway session and causing some Scottish bloggers to melt with her Bones You Have Thrown At Me And Blood I Have Spilled album. I have yet to hear a bad word about this album or her live performances.

Listen to the gorgeous The Bird to get an idea of the beautiful sounds and imagery she creates.

Happy Meals have already won a new fan in me. Their name caught y attention when the SAY Award longlist was announced and I was transfixed by the gorgeous and eclectic sounds they create on their Apero album. It is just so gorgeously different - think Stereolab crossed with Kraftwerk in the year 2025. 

I really hope to see them live in the near future. 

Belle and Sebastian have made the shortlist with Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance. I reviewed the album on release HERE 

It is a brave album; dealing with personal illness, incorporating disco influences, yet remaining distinctly Belles. As per the review, I think there are some incredible songs on the album. Stuart Murdoch is an exceptional songwriter and I certainly wouldn't be surprised if they won.

Paulo Nutini is on the shortlist with Caustic Love. Paulo is a huge artist with worldwide appeal and this album has won him new fans, including those who perhaps poured scorn on him and his music in the past.

I haven't heard the full album however a couple of my best friends have been won over by it. Performances and songs like Iron Sky below highlight why he may become the most mainstream artist to win the SAY Award to date.

Honeyblood are a band that have worked exceptionally hard over the last year to promote their eponymous album that was released on Fat Cat, a label that has taken Scottish acts to their hearts over the years.

Honeyblood (the band and album) is very old school indie guitar music - so no surprise that I quite like it. Humour, warm guitars and good hooks are evident throughout. That said, I'd be surprised if they win and have done well to get to the shortlist.

Paws are another act on the Fat Cat Records label and their album Youth Culture Forever has understandably found favour in America where they have toured extensively. The slacker/grunge guitar sound can be exceptionally catchy at times but it isn't without depth and there is so much more to them as evidenced on their near 12-minute epic War Cry which has echoes of Nirvana, quiet verses then truly exploding into life.

SLAM are veterans of the Glasgow music scene, so in that sense it is good to see them on the shortlist with their Reverse Proceed album. It must be around 10-years since I have seen or heard SLAM in action, however I am reliably informed that they are still leading their field.

Judge for yourself with this continuous mix of the album;

Mogwai's Rave Tapes didn't make the shortlist but Rock Action label mates Errors have made it with Lease Of Life. Pardon the pun but they seem to have had a new lease of life - I was surprised when I caught them live in Glasgow Green for the Commonwealth Games last summer. They put on an incredible show to match their sonic soundscapes.

Errors have a real chance of winning for me. They seem to be progressing as a band, unafraid to explore and experiment, willing to bring friends (Cecilia Stamp on guest vocals) into their inner circle and gathering some fantastic reviews.

Check Through The Knowledge Of Those Who Observe Us for evidence of the expansive, melodic and experimental sound that Errors are capable of creating. The songs were created on the Isle of Jura and this epic 13-minute closer is a song with plenty of dreamy space, not in a rush, building gloriously.

So there you go - my top 3 in no particular order would be Happy Meals, Errors and Kathryn Joseph. My outsiders would be Honeyblood and Paws. But technically each artist has a 10/1 chance of winning!

The SAY award ceremony is at the ABC in Glasgow on the evening of 17th June.

Paws ft. Alice Costelloe - Sore Tummy

The fact that this blog is named after 'Everything Flows' by Teenage Fanclub probably lets it slip that I like some nice fuzzy guitars at times. I do, so there you go.

Paws are a band that have been floating around for a while, releasing some very DIY tapes, a split single on the excellent Gerry Loves Records (another Fanclub reference) and then signing to Fat Cat Records who have a pretty strong track record for taking Scottish bands, working them hard and building them up (Frightened Rabbit, Twilight Sad and We Were Promised Jetpacks).

I was actually in the audience at a Born To Be Wide/Wide Days gig (following a seminar) on the night that Paws were signed to Fat Cat. I was rather drunk and enjoyed their fuzzy guitar indie pop, but then I never really followed them afterwards for whatever reason.

So I haven't bought their album 'Cokefloat!' yet, despite loads of good reviews. On the evidence of this incredible single I have clearly missed out.

Browing Facebook and Twitter on a quiet and cold January night I came across a warm slice of indie guitar pop heaven. This.....

The guitars sound like they could have been half-inched from a number of old 7-inches collecting dust in my back room. The dual vocals (with guest Alice Costelloe from Big Deal) are immediate and infectious, the melody flows with ease.

'Sore Tummy' is a phrase used quite commonly in Scotland - it is a great title, the song is full of humour and some brilliant lines;

He looks like a junky sometimes, but junkies have beautiful eyes

The doctors dont' know anything, it's not right, not right

You're so tired of hearing me, talk about my sore tummy

The doctors don't know anything, it's not right, not right

Well my belly sure does hurt me, but it's OK cause I feel down a lot

The contractions come and go like a birth, but if a babys on the way I'd be surprised

This is just indie guitar pop perfection, echoes of Dinosaur Jr and The Breeders shine through. I'll be buying the album and no doubt kicking myself for not buying it on release.

Rick Redbeard/Adam Stafford split 7-inch, Gerry Loves Records

So I'd been home for an hour tonight before my wife said 'What have you been buying now?' before she handed a package over. The answer was a t-shirt from Gerry Loves Records and a split 7-inch package containing their most recent release (no.9) Rick Redbead & Adam Stafford and an earlier release that I don't have in my wee Gerry Loves collection by (no.2) Trapped In Kansas and Yahweh.

me breathing in!

Gerry Loves Records could be described as a boutique record label based in Edinburgh, specialising in bringing artists together for split 7-inch singles or 12-inch EP's. I can't remember how I discovered them but I bought their first release and I was then involved through Miaoux Miaoux in their third release, also buying their Paws/Lady North release.


So it is a busy and productive label and owner Andy Lobban clearly has excellent taste in music (Paws have signed to Fat Cat and Miaoux Miaoux to Chemikal for example) and art (the packaging is always fantastic).


I have mentioned Adam Stafford a few times on this blog and his offering of 'Vanishing Tanks' for this split 7-inch is one of the best things (or at least my favourite) I have heard from him. 


The guitar riff sounds pretty familiar and it is really bugging me as to what it sounds like. Adam lays down beats over the guitar and then layers his voice to great effect. The section/chorus/mantra 'won't let you walk away, won't let you walk away, out of here now' is glorious.


Adam is a prolific and talented artist, check out his Wiseblood Industries website to discover his back catalogue. I would highly recommend last years 'Build A Harbour Immediately' album to start with.

I had no idea who Rick Redbeard was when I bought this as I ordered it on the strength of Adam.    It turns out that Rick is the lead singer of The Phantom Band, who are a band I can appreciate but can't get into at all.


I didn't have any problems getting into 'Now We're Dancing' though. The guitar riff is softly picked out over some gentle percussion. Rick's voice is stunning, lifting the song at all the right times. This is one of the most beautiful lyrics of the year for me.

I would love to say your name, if only for the sound

Some bubbling electronica is spliced into the song in the perfect way, as is some melodica. This song just sounds timeless. It is ripe for a film.


If you order the 7-inch it comes with 2 bonus tracks as well! I haven't got to them yet as I keep playing the record!


The Yahweh and Trapped In Kansas 7-inch comes in a handmade fabric sleeve with polaroids stuck on by the bands themselves.

'Make Me Stop' by Yahweh is brilliant. It reminds me of acts like the Postal Service. The vocals are put through some kind of effects, the synths bubble, there is some gentle glockenspiel...its all quite psychedelic in a modern way. I love this. The vocal melody just flows superbly.


So there you go - some new music and a brilliant little label run by someone who, like me, is also madly in love with Teenage Fanclub. Check it all out via the links in this blog.



'Towerblock' by Trapped In Kansas is all chiming guitars and very Scottish sounding vocals. It takes a while to get going and when it does the hook is hammered home.

Fall down, this is like love and I feel lost

There are 2 bonus tracks available via download with this release as well, I'll leave them for you to check out yourself.


So there you go - some new music and a brilliant little label run by someone who, like me, is also madly in love with Teenage Fanclub. Check it all out via the links in this blog.

Lady North/Paws - Gerry Loves Records split single

If you google Gerry Loves Records the following blurb will appear on your screen;


A tiny DIY Label in Edinburgh, Scotland, producing quality musical artefacts. 


It is a pretty perfect description.


The first release on this tiny DIY label with a great name (a play on Teenage Fanclub's Gerry Love for any non-Fanclub fans) was a little over a year ago, in April 2010, another split single featuring Conquering Animal Sound and Debutant. Since then releases have also included music by; Trapped In Kansas, Yahweh, Japanese War Effort, Miaoux Miaoux, Wounded Knee and Fox Gut Daata. Now we arrive at LOVES005 with the release of a new 7-inch featuring Lady North and Paws.


Before I go on, it is worth going on to the Gerry Loves website where you get to listen to all the releases to date, hopefully before you buy one or two. 


Full credit to Gerry Loves Records for pouring their heart, soul and cash into Scottish independent music.

A split 7-inch single reminds me of my youth and Nirvana sharing vinyl space with Jesus Lizard. I still have the 7-inch, it is probably worth a decent amount.


The artwork (Gerry Loves Records like their artwork) is more simple than the previous split 12-inch that came out at the tail end of 2010. Lady North get one side and Paws the other in a hand silk screened cover.


Let's check out what is on offer on the vinyl that comes inside.


Lady North offer 'It's All About Gettin' that Claude Monet'. Their music is described as 'math rock'. Now I'm not quite sure what that means, what I get on listen is evidence of a band that are clearly shit hot and exceptionally tight. The recording sounds pretty live, perhaps because of the fact that it sounds like freeform jazz or a jam at times, really loose, yet they know what they are doing.


You can get lost in this, I imagine it would be brilliant live and I'm regretting not going to the launch night at Captain's Rest earlier this month. 


There is what could be considered a drum solo at times, the music veers from jazz to prog to what could also be considered heavy rock at times. 

Paws are up next with the track 'Lekker'. I caught them at Sneaky Petes in Edinburgh back in April and I really enjoyed their energetic set and guitar sounds.


If anything, they sound even more ferocious live with 'Lekker' than they did that night in Petes! 


'Lekker' is under two-and-a-half minutes of driving guitars and beats. The vocals are distoted to the extent where it is quite hard to make out the lyrics at times (along with the fact that they fly through the song) 

yeah we just started something new, but i am still pretty terrified of you

It is a pop punk, fierce love song and over before you know it with a catchy; 

'holy f**k I think I'm falling in love, with you, love uv uv uv, with you'.

Check an acoustic version below;

I look forward to the next release.