CLEAN GIRL & THE DIRTY DISHES, LEITH DEPOT, EDINBURGH, MAY 1 2026

'Greasy spoon garage rock' from California. Taking a wild chance with this one, as I know NOTHING of any of the bands, other than their names. I have heard not a single song from any of them. This could go horribly wrong or it might be amazing. Fingers crossed. 

It's Leith Depot, and it's the warmest day of the year so far so, if nothing else, it's going to be HOT.

Well, yes. it was hot. Also very poorly lit, so there are next to no photographs.

Line-up:

THE GUTTER BELLES: Featuring ex members of THEE GIRL FRIDAYS, THE SHOP ASSISTANTS and THE NETTELLES, this is their first gig under their new name. Retro 60's style garage rock. Actually dead good.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/T6W_FgxfiiY   https://www.facebook.com/Thegutterbelles

PREV. I.O.T.A.: Previously YOUR ILLEGAL OPERATIONS on TRANSGENDER ALIENS, apparently. I can see why they went for the abbreviation. DIY garage punks, reminiscent of Stooges-lite. Singer/guitarist Suzi(?) needs a new guitar. One that stays in tune.

VIDEO:   https://youtu.be/-_uZjgyhaCY   https://www.instagram.com/your.i.o.t.a

CLEAN GIRL AND THE DIRTY DISHES: All the way from Eureka, California. More retro garage rock, but with a thick, gnarly guitar tone this time. An upside-down guitar, played left-handed by a right-handed guitarist. Because of that childhood pony incident. Very many songs, old, new, and covers.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/annnMFvYUnU   https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100040878134632   https://www.instagram.com/cleangirlandthedirtydishes

Well, that went quite well. Three bands I knew nothing about, but who were all great fun. Well played, The Onion Cellar.

SCOTT McCLOUD, LEITH DEPOT, EDINBURGH, FEBRUARY 27 2026

Ex GIRLS AGAINST BOYS chap going solo in Edinburgh. Sold out gig, which means it's going to be hot.

 Line-up:

MAIN PRIMATE: Local post-punk quartet, featuring grizzled veterans of many, many bands. Bassman Robert Fairfoull did his back in the other day doing something really hard, like standing up, so he may be a little stiff tonight. We shall see.

Doesn't seem to hold him back. to be fair.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/gQqCvPhaAK8    https://www.facebook.com/MPrimate20

PILOTCAN: Veteran shoe-gazey indie/post-punk slackers, back out again after losing founder member Joe Herbert to cancer last December. This could be emotional.

Appearing tonight with, I think, a new drummer, a cellist, and backing singer EFFIE. We get a mix of old stuff, recent stuff and brand new stuff. What do they sound like, you ask? A bit of Brit-pop, a bit of Dinosaur Jr, a bit of Talking Heads, a bit of Beatles. Maybe.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/zQFVECTKwHo     https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100030982436920

SCOTT McCLOUD: I know nothing of Mr. McCloud, other that that he was in GIRLS AGAINST BOYS, about whom I know equally little.(Seems they were a New York based post-hardcore unit. Quite popular)

So, here he is. Doing a bunch of his own songs, acoustic versions of GVSB songs, and a couple of covers. Have to say, old punk songs done on acoustic guitar are... 'interesting'. I particularly like The Stooges' 'Search and Destroy'. There's a fair bit of chat about the old days in GVSB, his childhood, his life in Vienna, and his girlfriend thinking, oddly, that it would have been cool if he'd have died in 1996.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/Rkn5dAffFR4   https://www.facebook.com/scott.mccloud.92

CLOTH, LEITH DEPOT, EDINBURGH, AUGUST 12 2025

The first of two actual Edinburgh Festival Fringe shows this year. This one is part of a series of conversations with Vic Galloway combined with live sets. Tonight's show features indie kids CLOTH, fresh from their tour supporting the mighty MOGWAI. 

Incidentally, the ticket price for this gig included a £1.00 levy to help out independent venues. This is a VERY GOOD THING, and everybody should do it.

Line-up:

SIOBHAN WILSON: The wispiest of indie/alt-folk singer-songwriterism. Gentle and beguiling and absolutely lovely. Siobhan is SUFRECS, the organiser of this series of events. Her Bandcamp page would suggest that she has been doing this singing-songwriting thing for a number of years but she still displays a charming schoolgirlish excitement at doing it in front of an audience. A delight.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/sNwln8sTf2c   https://siobhanwilson.bandcamp.com/music  https://www.facebook.com/siobhanwilsonmusic

                                    

Next, we get the interview with Vic Galloway, well known DJ and presenter. Interesting, I guess, and a large part of the event concept, and even a chance for the audience to put a few questions to the band. However, the chat limits the band to a brief 5 song set, and I'd like to see more of them.

CLOTH: Glasgow-based but Borders-born twins Rachel and Paul Swinton, fresh off a big tour supporting Mogwai. They don't sound like Mogwai. Subtle, low-key indie, they're normally a three-piece, but they're playing without their drummer tonight. Which is odd, because he's here, at the back of the room, his duties being covered by a little box apparently called Roland. 

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/GNFMzXI7GEM   https://www.facebook.com/clothband

WILD AGAIN, LEITH DEPOT, EDINBURGH, JUNE 21 2025

 Typically wonky selection from FUZZBAT in the sweatbox that is Leith Depot. 

Line-up:

ERRANT BOY: Not exactly in the first flush of youth, these jangly indie types have been away for a while, but are back with new material. Sitting somewhere in the space between the Smiths and Talking Heads, but sounding like neither of them, the songs have a whiff of wistful nostalgia about them.

VIDEO:   https://youtu.be/0E2-bVMiSv8    https://errantmedia.bandcamp.com/album/memory-fractures

PORTABLE HEADS: Insanely skilful lads from Dundee. A rousing blend of prog, psych, noise, and post-punk, and very, very sweaty, despite some interesting trouser choices. Drummer appeared about to spontaneously combust at any moment. Caught them a few times now, and this was probably the best set I've seen them play.

VIDEO:   https://youtu.be/61DZRNMqfkI   https://www.facebook.com/portableheads

WILD AGAIN:  Hard to classify, these folks. Formed from the remains of DEAD WHITE MALES, they're not quite post-rock, not quite prog, not quite folk, not quite dream-pop, not quite shoegaze, not quite a lot of things. Mostly, but not entirely, floaty and ethereal, they retain the use of Just Intonation which so characterised the sound of DWM, but now with added violin and no drums.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/5bqh7M9BH7Q    https://wildagain.bandcamp.com/album/wild-again

DRAGGED UP, LEITH DEPOT, EDINBURGH, JUNE 15 2024

A new venue, kind of. LEITH DEPOT shut up shop some time ago, for various reasons, but has now been re-invented and re-opened. Which is A VERY GOOD THING. The old venue was excellent, but small and very, very hot. I'll be interested to find out what the revised version is like*. 

FUZZ BAT GIGS have always been good friends of the Depot, and can be relied upon for oddness and nice posters. 

Venue: LEITH DEPOT, obviously.

Line-up: With what seems to be a recurring theme recently, we get three new-to-me bands tonight. I'll hand you over to the Fuzz Bat team for potted descriptions.

PAL: 'Energetic fun delightful trio formed by a lobster-clawed pop svengali.' Frankly, I'll be disappointed if there are no lobster claws.

Sadly, there are no claws. They are, however, hugely entertaining. Joyfully ramshackle garage punk, including a gloriously terrible mash-up of ABBA's 'Does Your Mother Know?' and Iron Maiden's 'Run to the Hills'. Utterly magnificent. It was, by the way, bassist Pat's 50th birthday.

VIDEO:   https://youtu.be/yDLu13jysW4   https://www.facebook.com/paledinburgh

DRAGGED UP: 'Fuzzy and scuzzy psychedelic garage rock quintet with a triple harmonious vocal threat.' Yes. Exactly that. I had the impression that Glasgow's Dragged Up were nominal headliners tonight, but it seems they have to go early as their drummer is at less than peak fitness. Doesn't seem to affect their performance, though, and we get a fine set of 60s surf flavoured garage psych while the sweat runs down our faces. It's HOT in here. I've made the elementary error of wearing my tightest skinny jeans tonight and now I feel like a boiled sausage.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/BIlbOa6dT4A   https://www.facebook.com/DraggedUp

LLENNETT: 'Atmospheric keyboards and powerful vocals flirting with a variety of moods and textures.'

Beset by periodic technical issues, Llennet will be forced to drop one song from their set, but otherwise give us exactly what is described above. As a bonus, we get a couple of songs featuring the guitar, an instrument she hasn't used on stage for a long time, apparently. She may have forgotten how to plug it in, but not how to play it. Bon Jovi style rock is NOT what I expected, but is delivered with aplomb but without the hairy man themes prevalent in that genre. Slightly upstaged at one point by the appearance of a birthday cake - made of choc ices  - but it's for Pat so nobody minds.

VIDEO:  https://youtu.be/Ux-V-a_-9-U   https://www.facebook.com/Llennett

* - STILL small - 60 cap. - and very very hot, but now not up the stairs.