When you look at the moments in music that kickstart a movement, it’s striking how many of them were gigs in small venues, tucked away in back rooms and basements. Scotland has no shortage of these spaces putting on exciting and innovative performances every night of the week – so much so that it can be hard to know where to start. Thankfully, your old pals at SNACK are here to steer you right.
GLASGOW
Glasgow is recognised as a UNESCO City of Music, and a huge part of why the city is overrepresented in excellent musicians is due to the grassroots venues supporting small bands. Bloc+ on Bath Street have been putting on 400 gigs a year for over 20 years now, always free on the door. They’ve hosted bands from all over the world and the odds are your favourite band had one of their first paid gigs here.
Craig Tannock has been a key figure in the Scottish music scene and his venues are always pushing innovative music, usually accompanied by good vegan food. Stereo hosts touring bands and queer-friendly club nights, while The Old Hairdresser’s looks after the free jazz and experimental performance.
Mono puts on exciting pop-ups and family friendly day gigs; The Flying Duck takes the scrappy punk and debauched club nights; and over in the south, The Glad Cafe has boundary-pushing performances and an excellent jazz night. Staying in the Southside, The Rum Shack has an exciting rotation of regular gigs: touring bands, Americana, and reggae all tucked into their L-shaped basement. Over at The Old Toll Bar and The Red Door Club you’ll see intimate gigs in one of Glasgow’s most beautiful bars, and an open mic night where you might catch some of the former cover stars of this magazine.
Over in the west, The Hug and Pint is a venue that regularly pulls unexpectedly big names and some of the best local artists in a tiny space. If you want to make eye contact with a musical icon, the Hug is the place to do it.
Of course, we can’t talk about Glasgow venues without the iconic King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, where so many music stories have begun. The list of big names who started their careers here is so long that it’s literally written on the stairs, although if everyone who says they were at that Oasis gig actually was it would have exploded.
A few streets up is the similarly iconic Nice N Sleazy, another tiny basement that holds a special place in the heart of the city, putting on incredible sweaty gigs and half-remembered club nights (in part due to some reasonably priced White Russians) since the early 90s. Broadcast next door – currently shut due to some plumbing problems – similarly packs global icons into a bouncy Glasgow basement.
EDINBURGH
Over in Edinburgh, The Jazz Bar has recently reopened after a similar plumbing-related closure and is back to full strength, putting on three gigs a night, seven nights a week, until the early hours. At the other side of the Meadows is Summerhall, a converted Victorian veterinary school where you can see your favourite bands whilst pretending to be Peter Davison in All Creatures Great and Small.
Down into the Cowgate is the incredible Sneaky Pete’s, a glorious little cavern that packs in some of the most exciting new bands around, from local debuts to global tours and some gloriously debauched club nights, in the heart of the Old Town. The recently reopened Leith Depot has seen off the gentrifiers for now, packing out their absolutely beautiful venue with some of SNACK’s favourite artists. Round the corner is the relatively unsung Sketchy Beats Cafe, which has been steadily booking a roster of really exciting performers for a couple of years.
DUNDEE, ABERDEEN, STIRLING & INVERNESS
Up in Dundee, Conroy’s Basement is fighting the DIY fight; it’s a scrappy dive full of energy and regular punk gigs. Beat Generator Live hosts big name tours and classic rock all-dayers.
Aberdeen has a really exciting live hip-hop scene, in no small part due to the excellent The Blue Lamp. The city centre venue has been championing the scene, and also booking global jazz and Americana artists, along with the appropriately named The Tunnels – upcoming artists and late night DJs are split across their two venues.
Tollbooth in Stirling is a forward-thinking arts venue that puts on not only excellent live music but comedy, photography, performance art, and supper clubs. Way up in Inverness, The Tooth & Claw keep flying the flag for heartfelt metal and scuzzy rock in an excellent dive bar with a ‘No Oasis’ rule on the jukebox.
Every one of these venues is run with heart and passion by people who have a love of music in their every breath. They’re fighting inflexible licensing laws and gentrifying developers, putting their necks on the line to bring music and performance that lights a fire in your hearts – for the price of a couple of pints. And you can’t say that for a stadium.
Main Photo Credit: Comfort, The Glad Cafe, Harrison Reid
