It’s a busy time for Scottish bands touring internationally. A glance at the Scotland On Tour listings shows that The Jetpacks have appearances at Coachella over the next two weekends, Mogwai are back on the East Coast, and Nazareth are in Europe. But Uncle Vic has more on Stevie Jackson in Brooklyn this Thursday.
Stevie Jackson in Brooklyn by Vic Galloway
Belle and Sebastian are now a seen as a legendary band and rightly so. In their 16 year career, they have released a slew of tremendous albums which began with the iconic ‘Tigermilk’, followed quickly by the even more important, ‘If you’re feeling sinister..’ – 2 absolute indie-pop classics!
With their last ‘Belle & Sebastian…Write about Love’ long-player, they kept the bar high and met all fans’ expectations, touring the world extensively to critical plaudits and continuing fan worship. Now the band are taking a short break, while main-man Stuart Murdoch works on a film of his ‘God Help The Girl’ project. I witnessed the live show at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh and it was truly excellent, so I’m certain the film will be too.
As a result, the rest of the band are embarking on new ventures and side-projects until the band reunites once again. Mick Cooke is writing soundtracks and children’s music; Bob Kildea is playing with The Vaselines and various others; Chris ‘Beans’ Geddes is DJ-ing (having recently compiled a new ‘Late Night Tales’ compilation – B&S’s 2nd!) and collaborating with Stuart David in the studio; Richard Colburn is helping Snow Patrol out and chilling out in Fife; and I’m not entirely sure what Sarah Martin’s up to, to be honest. Sorry!
Secondary songwriter in the band, Stevie Jackson has decided to go out on his own for a while too. He’s written, recorded and is touring a solo album – the ingeniously entitled ‘(I can’t get no) Stevie Jackson’ – what a guy!. It’s an ambitious and sonically adventurous piece of work that pulls together 60’s, 70’s and 80’s indie, beat, pop and soft-rock influences, combining traces of musicals and even some music-hall.
Never straying too far away from his songwriting within Belle & Sebastian, it has become a cult hit and furthered his reputation amongst fans as a songsmith with humour and charm. Catch him this week at the Bell House in Gowanus, where the NYC indie-kids will be lining the streets to watch him play. The Belles will be back together before long, so this is a perfect opportunity and one that won’t necessarily be around that long.
Tickets here
Vic
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Rhinestone Cowboy, Bowlie Weekender 1999
httpv://youtu.be/F223FrAc8-s
Feel The Morning
httpv://youtu.be/bp8IUZzdq6g
Jonathan David – Lowlands 2006
httpv://youtu.be/7TaHcNH9coE
Scotland on Tour this month
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Photo Credit: Artie