A Deadline of Optimism by Fresh Ayr Folk Fest organisers … For the last three years we have been working towards a fresh new festival for the town of Ayr, the first of its kind and an injection of creativity for the local area.  We have booked some of the best bands on the national music scene and worked tirelessly to bring an exciting and bespoke festival experience to the town.  We fully understand the rise of living costs for everyone during this time and there are always risks putting on a new event. We have worked to mitigate risk wherever possible and we are close to making th ..read more

Over 8,000 tickets sold for 40th Orkney Folk Festival, taking place this weekend: May 25-28, 2023 Visiting artists from USA, Canada, Sweden, Norway, Ireland, Wales, England and throughout Scotland set to join scores of artists from Orkney’s own famed folk scene.  40th anniversary programme topped by globally renowned Scottish icons Capercaillie, flanked by community orchestra The fortieth edition of the famed Orkney Folk Festival has opened – and in triumphant style, with the event smashing all previous ticket records.  For the first time in the event’s four decades, over 8,000 co ..read more

For its 24th edition, the Specsavers Scottish Music Awards – the flagship annual fundraiser of Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy Charity – united the country’s music community in celebration of stars past, present and future. The glittering ceremony saw exclusive live performances from award-winners Rod Stewart, Altered Images, The View, Peat & Diesel, Tamzene, Dylan John Thomas and Rianne Downey, while local legends Lewis Capaldi, Paolo Nutini and Gerry Cinnamon, amongst others, also took away top prizes. * Peat and Diesel ..read more

Shades of Amber 2022 is a development from the previous pre-covid ‘Perthshire Amber Festival’ and will be in part a series of concerts and in part a get together and chat with friends and food and some great music sessions! The four individual concerts are being held at Cardney Steading, Perthshire from Friday 4th – Sunday 6th November. Dougie and Jenny MacLean have always felt spontaneous music sessions to be the lifeblood of any musical event and Dougie is very much looking forward to a weekend with less travel to and from venues and the necessary sound and lighting checks involved…and more ..read more

Showcasing the talents of the finest traditional singers in the country, Aberdeen Branch of the Traditional Music and Song Association of Scotland (TMSA) are delighted to host The World’s Room in Aberdeen on Friday 9 September. This is the second event in Aberdeen – following in the footsteps of The World’s Room in Edinburgh – in bringing the finest traditional singers from Scotland and rest of the UK to perform. The format of these evenings is the guest singer opening and closing each half with a song from several of the attendees in between, this leads to a fine mix of song and a feeling of ..read more

Scotland’s top musicians will tour the Highlands & Islands with Blas Festival, 2-10 September The Highlands & Islands will see a flurry of musical and cultural activity over the next few days as the Blas Festival hits the road for the 18th year, visiting village halls and concert venues across the region, as well as an extensive online programme of events. Musicians and singers including Norrie MacIver, Rachel Walker, Gillebrìde MacMillan, Mànran, Mary Ann Kennedy, Kim Carnie, Paul McKenna and Sian will take to the stage in venues from Stornoway to Ballachulish as the Blas Festival re ..read more

The thrilling 10-day programme of events at this year’s The Spree will take place at the iconic Spiegeltent in the town’s Bridge Street from Thursday 1 – Saturday 10 September. Shows featuring Scottish folk rock favourites Tide Lines, pictured above, (1 September), Ocean Colour Scene legends Simon and Oscar (2 September) and Norman Blake, Bernard Butler and James Grant (5 September) have already sold out. The opening Saturday (3 September) will see an all-day festival-within-a-festival in the Spiegeltent as local charity LNP Promotions stage the popular ModStuff, featuring live music and the ..read more

Born To Be Wide is set to return with a special evening celebrating the Scottish capital’s music scene, both past and present. Taking place at the Fruitmarket Gallery on Monday 22 August, it will begin with the book launch of Edinburgh’s Greatest Hits, which charts the city’s musical history. Co-authors Jim Byers and Fiona Shepherd will be in conversation with Born To Be Wide founder, Olaf Furniss, and will be signing copies on the night. They will highlight some of the featured stories, how the book was conceived and how the music scene can continue to thrive. Members of the audience will al ..read more

After three long years, the Orkney Folk Festival returns to a full-scale live event this weekend, and in triumphant style – breaking all previous ticket records. For the first time in the event’s 39-year history, over 7,000 individual concert tickets have sold in advance of the Stromness-based festival’s opening, today, with 17 of the festival’s 32 shows sold out. In addition to record-breaking live audiences, folk fans at home can also tune into this weekend’s festivities, with the addition of three recently announced live-streamed festival concerts. Dubbed ‘Virtually Orkney Folk Festival’ th ..read more

RSD 2022 on 23 April – find your local shop @ http://www.recordstoreday.co.uk/shop-locator/ After two years of being forced to strip back their plans, record stores from Edinburgh to East Anglia, Belfast to Bristol are set to mark the 15th anniversary of Record Store Day in style with exclusive releases and events to cater for every taste and need on 23 April. No Record Store Day is complete without the endless live music, performances and events taking place in shops all across the UK, making it one of the biggest simultaneous music parties in the calendar. Fr 2022 Record Store Day UK is pro ..read more