NEHH PRESENTS: JENNY HVAL
Summerhall – The Dissection Room (Venue 26) 7pm, 18th August
Following the release of her transcendent eighth solo album, Classic Objects, in March of this year, Norwegian experimental musician Jenny Hval brings her daring, eclectic songwriting and provocative, philosophical lyricism to Edinburgh’s Summerhall. Hval’s most accessible record to date, Classic Objects is an intoxicating expanse of sound, awash in radiant harmonies and ethereal synths. As always, Hval is unafraid to tackle complex and challenging themes, raising questions about marriage, identity, gender, and the role of art within a consumerist society.
THE RELENTLESS APPROACH OF BETTER TIMES
ZOO Southside – Studio 117 Nicolson Street (Venue 82) 1pm, 14th till 20th August
The Relentless Approach of Better Times is a multimedia performance by double bass player Emma Smith, exploring the climate crisis, corruption in politics, and the forced displacement of people. After studying classical double bass at the Royal College of Music, Smith spent time working with Musicians Without Borders in El Salvador and Palestine and supported the creation of artistic spaces for displaced people across Europe. Informed by this experience and featuring film footage from her work with Musicians Without Borders, Smith’s solo show considers the role of music in human resilience and in healing from trauma.
zoofestival.co.uk/programme/the-relentless-approach-of-better-times
ACCORDION RYAN’S POP BANGERS
The Counting House 10.15pm, 4th till 28th August (excluding 8th, 15th or 22nd)
An accordion is many instruments in one and has such a distinctive sound sure to make you jive, jog, and jig – and he’s covering your fave pop songs too, so you’ll jive, jog, and jig even more frenetically than if it was an old shanty.
NIGHT DANCES
ZOO Southside 10.30pm, 17th till 28th August (excluding 22nd)
‘An assault on the senses’. Sign me up! My senses would like their money’s worth, please – and with ten intergenerational dancers and three live musicians presenting four raw dance poems, I think we’ll be reet. Created by Irish dance maker Emma Martin, with live music from Daniel Fox (of Irish post-punk group Gilla Band), they say ‘the time for dancing has come’.
zoofestival.co.uk/programme/ night-dances
Photo: Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland
LUNCHTIME CONCERTS
Pianodrome, Old Royal High School (Venue 391)1pm, 5th till 27th August, Wednesdays – Sundays in September
The Pianodrome is without a doubt one of Edinburgh’s most unusual concert venues. The amphitheatre, constructed entirely out of disused pianos, was first built in the Royal Botanic Gardens of Edinburgh for the Fringe in 2018. Now a brand-new installation, resident at the Old Royal High School for the duration of the summer, will be hosting free concerts at 1 p.m. every day during the Fringe and every Wednesday through Sunday in September. The small and intimate space will showcase a wide array of talent from both local and international musicians, providing a welcoming, relaxed, and community-oriented environment.
tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/ pianodrome-free-lunchtime-concerts
