What’s on at Hootananny and Mad Hatters
Bad Actress began forming in 2016. Guitarist Struan McFarlane (15 at the time) and Thomas Bell (then 19) had previously worked together when Struan stood in as drummer in Thomas’s former band, Far From Devils, for their final gig. Having decided to start a new venture, they promptly recruited former FFD bassist, Fearghas Lyall (then 17). They asked Struan’s younger brother, Lewis, to fill in on drums until they could find a full timer.
Lewis, then just 12, had been gigging for over two years with Struan and their older brother Ross, as hard core power trio, Civil Punk. He set the bar high and was ultimately confirmed as the full time drummer. They then focussed on finding a vocalist. After a number of try outs, former FFD singer, Grant Clark, joined but later decided it wasn’t for him. It was at this point that the older McFarlane, Ross (then 17), offered his services and was invited to try out. It worked, the line up was set and they settled on the name Airrade.
Struan and Thomas had set down a few songs by this time, with solid riffs influenced by the likes of ACDC, ZZ Top, Aerosmith and Motorhead. The band played their first gig in July 2017 at the Audio Club in Glasgow, with Struan and Ross sharing centre stage and bringing a touch of glam to the show.
Happy with the results, the gig was followed by shows in other Glasgow venues and in Inverness and the McFarlanes’ home town of Forres. In February 2018 their performance at the Inverness Ironworks venue captured the attention of social media site, Inverness Gigs, who described them as musically melding ACDC, Iron Maiden, Motley Crue and that they ‘visually go straight down the road of late eighties Glam Rock’. The site called them ‘brash, young and utterly without irony and perform with a tremendous amount of self belief’ . . . ‘these chaps are living and breathing their music and it really does work for them’ . . . ‘They are utterly ridiculous and brilliant with it. It’s a real pleasure to see a young band grab rock music by the bollocks and give it a proper shake.’
This review also criticised the band’s name, which prompted them to change it. Bad Actress released a live video of ‘Whiteline Adrenaline’ shot at the Ironworks show, and have recorded their first single, ‘Acting like an Animal’, due out later in 2018.
The DOGHOOSE SKA band is a collective of like-minded mates that enjoy all things SKA. We will be playing classic SKA/ 2 tone tunes by bands like the Specials and Madness, with some cleverly thought out tunes from established artists & original material
Ashley and The Cosmonauts are a 5 piece Highland based folk rock group fronted by Ashley Mackay.
Previous highlights include appearances at Belladrum Festival and Jocktoberfest amongst other festivals.
The Tumbling Souls are a country music band from the Isle of Lewis. A supergroup of the best musicians from the Outer Hebrides from all genres of music.
The sound is heavily influenced by the Country music and Bluegrass of America from the 50’s and 60’s with more than a hint of Scottish Traditional music seeping in through the instrumentation of the band.
The Tumbling Souls were formed in April 2017 as an excuse for performing musicians and friends to spend time with each other and has spiralled out of control. Viral videos online ensured the band were quickly performing at festivals to crowds of thousands and are excited to share their debut album through Stornoway’s Wee Studio Records. The music is very fun and very entertaining. Be prepared to smile and dance.
Physical tickets available from Hootananny. If you can’t make it into the venue itself prior to the concert you can contact the band directly for tickets via the email keithie_boy@hotmail.com
Mad Hatters teams up with The Tooth & Claw to present GIRDERS!
The event is a mini-festival over 2 venues showcasing some the heaviest and rockiest acts from the North of Scotland and featuring:
Zombie Militia
King Kobalt
The Broken Ravens
Devils Queen
Kryora
Catalysis
Below The Neck
Isolates
Devil Within
Overrun
Free Entry!
After the bands finish join us for our resident Mad Hatters DJ until 3 am!
The Naked Feedback are a 4-piece rock group that hail from Glasgow: made up of Jack, Derek, and brothers Dean and Callum.
The artist has gained their reputation in the last 2 years through their high quality music videos with attention grabbing visuals and thought provoking stories. Their latest single ‘The Goodbye’ reached over 40k views on social media inside 2 weeks and has been played by half a dozen of Scotland’s biggest football teams during the beginning of the year.
Now they are coming to Mad Hatters to preform for you. It is a night not to be missed.
Ashley and The Cosmonauts are a 5 piece Highland based folk rock group fronted by Ashley Mackay.
Previous highlights include appearances at Belladrum Festival and Jocktoberfest amongst other festivals.
Ashley and The Cosmonauts are a 5 piece Highland based folk rock group fronted by Ashley Mackay.
Previous highlights include appearances at Belladrum Festival and Jocktoberfest amongst other festivals.