Three From Leith

New site - update your bookmarks !

2006-02-07T00:15:00.000Z

I've moved onto a new site, so www.threefromleith.blogspot.com will no longer be updated.

Please update your bookmarks to www.threefromleith.com to avoid missing out on any new shows.

See you over there !

Three From Leith Showcase Gig !

2006-02-06T22:49:00.000Z

In the last show, I hinted that something was up and asked you to keep your diary free for Friday 14th April. Well, I can now reveal that - courtesy of the fantastic Santa Dog - the lineup has been finalised for the first ever Three From Leith showcase gig !!

The Venue: Cabaret Voltaire, Blair St, Edinburgh
The Date / Time: 14th April, 8pm - 10pm
The Bands: Chocyamo, Santa Dog, Opal Sky

Ticket price to be confirmed (likely to be £5)

Start spreading the news.....

PodcastUser Magazine launches online

2006-02-02T20:52:00.000Z

A new free online podcast magazine (in PDF format) has been launched, featuring articles by many well-known UK podcasters including some quiet bloke from Leith...

Visit the site at www.podcastusermagazine.com - there's an RSS feed so you can have each issue delivered to you automatically when it comes out.

On a separate matter, it's a new month so why not vote for Three From Leith at Podcast Alley ? Whilst you're there, remember to vote for all of your other favourites too.

Show 24 - East & West

2006-01-30T20:49:00.001Z

Three songs, two from the East of Scotland and one from the West ! Evening News and Evening Times - yes, Edinburgh and Glasgow !

This week's show was done whilst reclining in my lovely new chair; does it make me sound more laid back ?!

I seem to be on a run of Scottish music at the moment, but as I explain in the show I'm being inundated with incredible music from local bands. Doing one show a week playing three tracks means that I'm just not able to fit in everything that I want to play. So, to all the bands still waiting to be played, bear with me - I'm getting there !!

This week's bands who came out of the big lucky bag of splendiferous tunes are:

The Silent Revolution - Tonight
Email the band
MySpace
Buy the music

Chocyamo - Bernard Drake
Email the band
MySpace
Buy the music - contact the band for details

The Ocean Floor - The Whole Animal
Email the band
MySpace
Buy the music

Splendid soundbeds as always by torchomatic

Comments by Jasna
TFL Synth voices by Alex Aitken

This week's Scottish Expression is "blether" as I'm sometimes accusing Jasna of being one when she havers on (I'll cover 'haver' another time !!)

Apologies for the rather shortened shownotes this week; I'm still looking after Jasna more nights a week than usual so time is rather short again. Maybe next week....

Thank you for continuing to support the independent artists in 2006 by listening, feeding back and buying their music.

In the News... the Evening News !

2006-01-24T18:41:00.000Z

If you've found your way here from the Edinburgh Evening News article, welcome !

Three From Leith has one purpose - to bring you music that you'd probably never hear anywhere else. Be it local, national or international; it's all from independent or unsigned bands who're ploughing their own musical furrow without record industry support or interference.

Please don't take from this that the music is of an inferior quality or will be a muffled, crackly demo that's unlistenable. It's most definitely not ! It's all incredible stuff which is superbly produced and put together. These artists don't need to fulfil any contractual obligations to put an album out by a certain date, so you'll not find filler tracks that are only there to pad out the one or two decent songs that they'd written in the allocated time. They can take their time and stay true to their own artistic vision with no need to compromise.

It seems that the press and the industry are slowly catching on, following the success of Nizlopi and now the Arctic Monkeys, who're successful of their own accord and who don't need record-company millions pumped into publicity campaigns to get there. They're now realising that artists can do it themselves and make money, and they're getting worried.

So - sit back, download a few shows and enjoy the incredible wealth of talent that's out there. If you like what you hear, you can contact the artists direct and you'll get a personal reply. How many artists that you buy in HMV or Virgin would do that ? How many will take the time to chat to you and will be genuinely pleased that you got in touch ?

And if you really enjoy the music, why not spend a few quid and buy from the artist direct ? Help them continue to make great music and provide you and I with unmeasurable listening pleasure. You won't regret it.

Show 23 - The Backpackers

2006-01-23T21:50:00.001Z

Apologies to the bands who I'd been planning to play this week, but after the Dropkick / Dead Beat Club gig at the Caledonian Backpackers Hostel last Friday I was put in the mood to play the bands I'd heard plus one which was new to me (I'd fallen into conversation with one of the band members and looked them up when I got home).

So, for a flavour of the gig I bring to you:

Dropkick - Top Of The World
From the amazingly catchy and incredibly witty 'Music To Watch Sheep By' album, which you really should buy. Tell the boys how much you enjoy them and pester Alastair to get the lyrics put online here. Or go and be their friend on their MySpace page.

The Dead Beat Club - Everything Turns To You
The band are going into the studio this week to record a 'live' performance of some of their material to capture that essence of the magic you feel at a gig. No multitracking, just setting up as a band and recording the whole band playing together. Keep your eye on their site and their MySpace page for details. Drop them a wee note here with some words of support and buy their wares.

The Sundowns - Wendy
I can't believe I hadn't heard this band before, but luckily I was speaking by chance to band member Ross who'd come along to see Dropkick and the Dead Beat Club. You can find out more at their site or on their MySpace page, and drop them a line via the message function on MySpace (as I don't have an email address for them and can't find one on their site).

The soundbed was supplied once more by the wonderful torchomatic.

Honourable mentions during the show to the following:
Sooz Rowan's "Cruisin' With Susan podcast" - TFL's 18-wheel lady US trucker friend
Molly From Omaha
Slowjet
Port O' Leith bar
Edinburgh Evening News

This week's Scottish Expression is the haws, as in "this scone is really nice - it's the haws, so it is"

Thank you for continuing to support the independent artists in 2006 by listening, feeding back and buying their music.

Show 22 - The Edinburgh Bands 2

2006-01-16T19:32:00.001Z

Are you still local ?

Over the last few months, I've been receiving lots and lots of CDs from many local bands. Once more, I'm staggered at the sheer quality of music coming out of Auld Reekie and by the number of bands living, recording and playing in the city. You've heard some of the tracks spaced over the last month or so, but today is another all-Edinburgh show for your enjoyment. Three tracks, three different styles, three more treats for your ears !

Douglas Kay - How Can I Be Sure
A track from Douglas's brilliant "Of All The Towns To Sleep In" album which you can buy or download from his site. Visit his MySpace page or email Douglas with your feedback / comments.

A Very Secret History - Hatcheck Girl
RIP 'Calvin', here's Edinburgh's alt-popsters with a new name to reflect their sound and style. Visit their MySpace page or email them your feedback / comments.

The Mars Patrol - Turn It Around
Rock'n'Roll with the lovely Davina Devine and the band. Pop by their site, click their Shop link and check out the Hotpants for sale along side the CDs! Or you can visit them on MySpace or email them with your feedback / comments.

The soundbed music was supplied by the excellent torchomatic

This week's Scottish Expression was "to go your dinger", as in "she was fair gaun' her dinger" (she was extremely angry).

'Molly From Omaha says "promote"!' - Molly's blog for tips on promoting your podcasts

'The Electrical Language podcast' - Three From Leith's friend Gabor's excellent show !

Please feel free to leave comments about the show, music or just say 'hi'. Alternatively, drop me an email, visit my MySpace page or leave your pin on my Frappr map; details are in the sidebar on the right !

Thank you for continuing to support the independent artists in 2006 by listening, feeding back and buying their music.

Site problems sorted !

2006-01-13T20:36:00.000Z

You may have noticed that the site was all messed up graphically over the 11th - 13th January.

I'd had horrendous problems with my external webhosting and had cancelled the contract and taken my own personal domain name elsewhere. I forgot, however, that the CSS files and some of the graphics used on this blog page were hosted there so they went when the hosting went !

I've got new hosting sorted out now and hopefully the new company will be a much better and less stressful experience all round.

If you notice anything missing or looking strange (apart from me in my photo), please email me or leave a comment.

Thanks for being patient whilst this went on !

Show 21 - Rocking again !

2006-01-09T19:44:00.001Z

Welcome to Show 21 from the all-new, easier to remember www.threefromleith.com ! Yes, I've registered a snappier domain name to get you to the site. Hope you find it a bit handier !

After a few weeks where the shows have been leaning more towards the laid-back, it's time to change gear and veer more towards rock for today's show. Presuming you're all getting back into work (which I was when I recorded the show at the end of last week), this lot should kick-start you back into the working year:

King Bear - Fantasy Of Killing
Self-styled as 'Edinburgh's premier musical quartet', sounding like a cross between The Fall and Sigur Ros and featuring my old workmate Ian Jeffries, the band have only just put up their website. Email them with any comments or feedback.

Luva-Anna - The Ballad O' Boaby Smith
The boys from Dundee also have a MySpace page here, which has more information about them and their excellent blend of folk, indie and rock. You can email the band here.

The Haze - Restless and Wild
A Radiohead-esque track from this Bristol 4-piece. I can't find a website per-se, but they do have an online forum for the band where you can leave your feedback or ask them how to get hold of their music.

As always, the bands really appreciate hearing what you think about their music and are grateful for the support you show by buying their CDs and merchandise. 'Podcasting' was the word of the year in 2005 - let's make 2006 the year of the podsafe music artists. Even if you just email them and say 'Hi, heard you on Three From Leith', every single contact brings a little joy into their hearts !

Finally, check out loyal listener and commenter Gabor Kovac's great new show, 'The Electrical Language podcast' and the equally loyal and podcast-loving Molly's blog 'Molly From Omaha says "promote"!' for tips on promoting your podcast. My apologies to both - I waffled so much during the recording of the show that I overlooked my shownote bulletpoint 'mention Molly and Gabor's sites'. D'Oh....

Background music was 'The Silk Route' by Satya, and Denis Kitchen's 'Cebrella'.

Show 20 - Happy New Year !

2006-01-03T11:13:00.001Z

A Happy and Prosperous New Year to everyone from Three From Leith ! I actually recorded the show on the 30th December, but these show notes are being written on January the 2nd as I wanted to see in 2006 before totally 'completing' show 20. I hope you all had a good one; hopefully the resulting hangovers are all a distant memory by now and you're making the best possible start to any resolutions you've set yourself for the coming 12 months. I'm aiming to start shifting off the weight I've put on since I stopped smoking on January 4th 2004; two years of extra poundage I'd love to lose again ! If you're saying goodbye to the nicotine habit, good luck ! All I can say is that it's worth every ounce of willpower in the end.

Listen out for the new feature, "Scottish Expression Of The Week", and let me know what you think of it ! And remember it's a new month, so pop along and vote for Three From Leith and all your other favourite shows at Podcast Alley (link on the right).

And so to this week's selection of new music for the New Year:

Hungry Lucy - Rainfall
"May you have brighter tomorrows.." The fabulous War-N and Christa Belle with a hauntingly beautiful start to 2006. I've used the Christmas money I got from my Grandad and I've placed my order for their "To Kill A King" CD . Check out their latest 'Tea With Hungry Lucy' podcast, watch their documentaries, buy their music and drop War-N a note of encouragement. He's a great, gentle guy and he always replies to emails.

Lena - Oh My Lady
The stunningly compelling vocal and songwriting talents of Lena Anderssen, in collaboration with Niclas Johannesen (whose efforts in getting me a copy of the "Can't Erase It" album get my undying thanks and gratitude). It's not available in the UK or the US yet, but it can be downloaded from this Danish site (if you understand Danish !) for around 7 GBP or about 12 USD at current exchange rates. You can also email Marie Hecht at artpeople and ask for release details for other parts of the world.

Fischer-Z - Beep
From an artist who's been a personal favourite and hero of mine since I discovered him and Fischer-Z in 1983 , I'm thrilled - with permission from John - to be able to start bringing you John Watts' music. In my opinion, one of the UK's finest singer / songwriters who deserves much more recognition for his talents. This song was taken from the 'Ether' album, which was "a combination of music album and accompanying road movie applying the principles of spontaneous live music-making to the recording process." In simple terms, he set off around the world with some rough song outlines, a laptop and recording software and met up with musicians and the public along the way to turn these into the finished items.

This year’s new double album and poetry book ‘Real Life Is Good Enough’ represents "a fresh new era for John; a return to more organic music-making, humorous writing and presenting his new work live on an extensive concert tour in a two-piece format with drummer and multi-instrumentalist Sam Walker." It's coming soon to the UK, so keep your eyes on the website !

Soundbed music this week was Cebrella by Denis Kitchen

Problem with show 20...

2006-01-03T10:52:00.000Z

Sorry everyone; for some reason, Blogger decided to create a feed to give you 'Tea With Hungry Lucy - 7' rather than Three From Leith 20. Seems that if you link to another podcast show within a post, it thinks that's your show file.... arghhh !!

I'm attempting to reinstate show 20 now...

My apologies.

Show 19 - New Year coming, new songs to hear !

2005-12-27T15:36:00.001Z

I knew things were looking up when I received an envelope addressed this way on Christmas Eve:

It makes me sound like one of those 70s DJs on Radio 1 !! It gave me such a laugh and the music was so good that it had to go in this week's show.

I was going to do a restrospective of all of the music I'd played since the show started in September; but then I remembered that I'm here to play you great new music, and I should be looking forward to the New Year and not back at the old year. If you want to treat yourself to a look back at what's been on Three From Leith in 2005, just go through the Archives which you'll find links to on the right-hand side. I'm marching on with fresh, exciting new bands who're giving me that little shiver of pleasure each time I hear them. This week's no exception, so load up the file and kick back with the music of:

Contramano - Checking U
Buy their excellent, full-length CD album 'Contramano' here
Email the band or visit their MySpace page to see and hear more about them.

funkspiel - Swing
Follow the link on their website to listen to more of their demos, or email the guys as they're really keen to hear what you think of what they're doing.
Alternatively, visit their MySpace page to hear more.

The Dead Beat Club - I Wish You Well
The band have two EPs which will soon be available via PayPal; you can sample them here and keep checking back to see when they're on sale.
Alternatively email the band to express your interest in buying their music and they should be able to sort you out in the meantime. And they have a MySpace page to visit too !

Once again, the soundbed music was supplied by the excellent torchomatic

Thanks to everyone for listening, subscribing, leaving comments, emailing me, feeding back to the artists and - most importantly of all - supporting the artists by buying their music. It's been my priviledge to play them since I started in September and I know that the bands are genuinely touched by everyone's support.

Keep up the good work in 2006 !

From me, Jasna and on behalf of all the artists you've heard and supported - Happy New Year !!

The Missing Christmas track is here !

2005-12-22T16:06:00.001Z

Much too good to sit on until next Christmas, I present the track I somehow managed to forget to cue up and play on the Christmas show:

3 Blind Mice - Watchstar

A beautiful, festive track with layered vocals which build up throughout the song. It really does evoke a really Christmassy feeling.

You can find the guys' CDs for sale here, along with details of where you can buy and download individual tracks.

Whatever, wherever and however you're celebrating this time of year, Jasna and I wish you all a peaceful and happy holiday and we'll be back next week !

Video interview with Hungry Lucy

2005-12-21T15:46:00.000Z

I know that many listeners really enjoyed the chilled-out, all-female vocalist show recently (Show 15), and especially the music of Hungry Lucy. Here's some information I received today from Hungry Lucy which you may want to check out:

The 3rd in the Hungry Lucy Video to Go series is a 15 minute documentary called Introducing Hungry Lucy. This video serves as a great intro to new fans of Hungry Lucy as well as offering some additional insight what makes the duo tick. The documentary includes interviews with both Christa Belle and War-N as well as plenty of live performance footage, concept video clips and behind the scenes photos and video. Christa and War-N discuss their first 3 albums, 2 US tours, inspirations, motivations and future plans.

This documentary has also been accepted by CurrentTV for their STUDIO website. If the video gets enough "greenlights" it may make it to TV. Do your part by viewing the video and giving us a "greenlight". CurrentTV, for those unfamiliar with it, is a fairly new television network launched in the US by former vice president Al Gore. Most of the content is created and approved by the viewers. Think of it as public access on serious steroids with plenty of funding. :)

Aside from CurrentTV, download the video for iPod, PSP or watch online in Windows or Mac formats (broadband connection highly recommended).

You can also subscribe to the video podcast feed via: ITunes

Enjoy !

Missing track !

2005-12-20T16:43:00.000Z

I just realised that I missed a track out of the Christmas Show that I had really wanted to play; I'll put it up over the next few days as it really was beautifully done and very Christmassy.

A Christmas Rock'n'Light extravaganza

2005-12-20T15:01:00.000Z

You know how some people go over the top and deck their houses and gardens out in a tacky Christmas lighting frenzy ?

Well, here's something a little different and done with much more skill, thought and individuality ! Turn it up loud, click on the headline and prepare to be amazed !

Man decks house with synchronized lights

MASON, Ohio (AP) - Some people at Christmas time are content to deck their homes with evergreen wreaths and holly, and maybe a few strings of lights made to look like glimmering icicles. Not Carson Williams. He spends nearly two months hooking up 25,000 lights, then programs them to dance to Christmas music.

Show 18 - The Xmas Show !

2005-12-19T12:15:00.002Z

Well, as you can see from these pictures taken on Saturday at my parent's house that we're in the mood already !! Apologies for my dishevelled look - colds give me quite bad outbreaks of plukes (a Scottish word which I'd like you to look up as an educational challenge) so I tend to avoid shaving until things have cleared up. And boy, do I have the most pathetically weedy, patchy excuse for a beard ! You'd think at my age I'd manage more than that pathetic thatch... The worst of my cold is over, though as you'll hear my voice is still sounding slightly different from it's normal state.

Hoping that you're all gearing up for a fun time over the festive season, I've lined up a selection of serious and not-so-serious tracks to take you up to the 25th. Hope you enjoy them ! This isn't the usual Three From Leith - there are more than three tracks - but I'm in the holiday spirit and I just went for a fun mix. Peace, happiness and best wishes to you all.

Freddy - Christmas Yet To Be
Buy the single here to donate to the charity of your choice

Jonathan Coulton - Podsafe Christmas Song

The Candy Butchers - Give Me A Second Chance For Christmas

Matthew Ebel - Walk A Thousand Miles (live)

Dropkick - Writing To Santa

Gidgets Ga Ga - Christmas Wish

American Heartbreak - Greatest Christmas Song Ever Written

Joel Kopischke - I'm Your Snowman, Baby

Background music was 'Bluegrass Jingle Bells' by Carl Vasta

IT CD ordering and Frappr mapping

2005-12-15T19:48:00.000Z

I received the following information from James from the band IT about how to order their current CD, 'Over and Out':

"We are currently in the process of setting up an online store on our website www.spacehouse.tv , but this will probably take a little while to set up. What we have done in the meantime is that people have sent us £5 in the post (or a cheque made payable to Nick Jackson), and we have posted off copies of the album (price includes p & p).

If you are ok with doing that, the address to send it to is:

Nick Jackson (IT)
32 Hutton Lane
Harrow Weald
Harrow
Middlesex
HA3 6RD"

On a separate issue - Frappr maps ! My apologies if you received an invite from me to join and are wondering why. I only meant to invite a handful of people but instead invited the whole of my GMail address book. People have already been visiting and wondering if the email was some kind of devious spam as they couldn't see a Frappr map on the page. The simple answer was that it wasn't spam, and I just hadn't got around to putting the map up before you came looking ! It's now there. Feel free to add yourself / stick your pin in to let me know where you are.

Show 17 - Tunes (not the menthol nose-clearing kind)

2005-12-12T21:17:00.001Z

Was the 'Tunes' ad a specifically British thing ? The man choked with the cold, trying to ask at the railway station ticket booth for a "First class dicket to Dottingham, please" as he hadn't eaten one and had his passages cleared with the cherry menthol vapour. Well, I could do with some today as I'm choked. I've kept the chatting to a minimum (who shouted 'Hurrah !' up the back there ?!) to save my voice, which tends to start cracking up quite quickly. My head's also stuffed with cotton wool so my thinking's not quite straight either - possibly why I played a Freddy liner twice in the show and then had the outro start up very quietly !! But it's all part of the live podcasting experience so I left it in, fluffs and all.

IT - Space Cadet Part 2
Email the guys and ask them about buying their music

Graystar - Life Support
The band have free mp3 files to download on their site
Give them some feedback on what you think here

Phideaux - Party
You can but Phideaux's music on CDBaby His next CD, "313", isn't actually out yet (despite what I said in the show, sorry), but keep your eyes on his site and on CDBaby for it appearing soon

Thanks to Freddy for the liner (more from him next week)

Background music was 'Cebrella' by Denis Kitchen

Get the show with no effort !

2005-12-09T19:27:00.000Z

Why not give yourself a treat this festive season and let your PC take the strain of getting all future Three From Leith shows for you ? Just imagine – you tell it what shows you'd like to get and you'll get them automatically whenever a new one appears ! Sounds good ? Then read on....

All you need to do is:

Download one of the many free podcast-gathering programs like RSS Radio, Juice, Doppler, Nimiq, iTunes etc

Install it, then give it the Three From Leith feed http://feeds.feedburner.com/ThreeFromLeith

and from then on it'll be downloaded automatically for you.

Easy ! So go on – give it a go today !

Show 16 - The Scottish Podcast Clan is here !!

2005-12-07T21:19:00.001Z

I made the announcement in show 14 that there was something exciting coming along soon; well, it's here !! Given that some of us have been linking to the site for a few weeks now, even while it was in development, it's probably no surprise that the 6 Scottish podcasts have banded together to form the Scottish Podcast Clan.

Yes, pop along to www.scottishpodcasts.com to find the best Scottish podcasts brought together under one roof. You'll be able to get all of the feeds for your favourite shows in one place, as well as being able to comment on what you've heard.

There's a nice, large link in the right-hand column which will take you there as if by magic !

So, in honour of this historic development, I put together a quick show featuring three stylistically-different Scottish artists, so that listeners old and new can enjoy a sample of the incredible variety of talent to emanate from this beautiful but small - yet incredibly creative and artistic - country that we call "home":

The Guttersound - Make Believers
('amazing Minx Punk' on Edinburgh's Broken Clothing Records - expect a lot more from this label on upcoming shows !)

Maeve O'Boyle - Not His Fault
(site not Firefox-friendly; best viewed in Internet Explorer)
"a 'natural lyricist' with an 'exceptional' voice"

Fourteen Hours - She Cried
Formed in 2003 by four mates in Edinburgh, named after a legendary drinking session during the festival season - playing at Nektar in Edinburgh on the 14th December, so catch them live !

Support Scottish independent artists - buy their music ! If they don't have any available yet, drop them an email and let them have some feedback on what you thought of their song(s) which you heard on Three From Leith.

Show 15 - Block out the Christmas stresses

2005-12-05T20:26:00.001Z

A very different show this week - no rock and no roll. I'm feeling in need of relaxation as the thought of Christmas fast approaching and no shopping done yet is stressing me out; handy then that recently I've been approached by bands playing some very laid-back, electronic music with female vocalists. I used to relax and switch off on the bus to work by listening to Enigma and Deep Forest, and these take me to the same places in my head. Hopefully you'll enjoy going along for the ride too.

So close those eyes (unless you're driving or walking along the street), let the stresses of the day slip away and sink down into yourself with tracks by:

Hungry Lucy - Her Song
Buy their music on iTunes, or from their site

I Am Jen - At The Same Time
Get Jen's 'Broken' EP on CDBaby or from her site

46Bliss - In A Long Time
Buy their music at mp3tunes.com, or from their site

Remember folks - independent artists are for life, not just for Christmas. Please support them by buying their music and feeding back to them via their websites.

Tonight's soundbed music was once more 'The World Outside My Window' and 'White Hotel', supplied by torchomatic.

A slightly longer wait

2005-12-01T22:39:00.000Z

The news that I'd been aiming to give you today will be delayed for a little while longer, but it'll be worth it in the end.

In the meantime, it's the first of the month so why not pop over to Podcast Alley and vote for Three From Leith as well as all of your other favourite podcasts ? Go on - see if you can bring us all a little Christmas cheer !!

Show 14 - The CanEdinGowians are coming !!

2005-11-29T17:44:00.001Z

Welcome once again to another musically stunning TFL ! I have a Canadian, an Edinburgh band and some Glaswegians to tempt you with from a chilly corner of 'Triglav', TFL HQ. You'll even learn something about our Scottish culture; who says learning isn't fun ?!

Without any futher ado (or inane waffle from me), tonight's line-up is:

Freddy - Apart
Buy the amazing album "Things You Never Thought I'd Say" and see just what a skilful singer/songwriter Freddy is, or give to charity to get the new Christmas single.

Dropkick - Crisps and Irn Bru*
'Album 25' and 'Music To Watch Sheep By' - highly recommended must-buys from possibly the sharpest social commentators around. Beneath those fab tunes there are some killer lyrics, guaranteed to make you guffaw out loud.

The 4th Parallel - Learn Our Lesson
Who plays what ? Will you be hypnotised by the starfield and eye-popping colours on their site ? There's only one way to be sure so nip over there and tell them what you think. Contact the band if you'd like to buy any of their releases

Tonight's wonderful soundbed music, 'The World Outside My Window' and 'White Hotel' was supplied by torchomatic.

* for those not familiar with Scottish culture, Irn Bru is a carbonated drink which is 'Made in Scotland from girders' and is our renowned 'other national drink'. People swear by it as a hangover cure. It's a shocking orangey/brown colour but I do admit to loving the stuff. You can find out more about it here at their mad website. Just a pity they don't have an ad archive as the older ones were simply superb !

As ever, all the artists featured in the show love and appreciate your feedback and support, so please drop by their sites and say 'hi', and stock up on great music to give as presents this Christmas / holiday season. Until next week - stay subscribed ! Cheery-bye !

Newsflash ! Keep an eye out on Thursday, 1st December for some exciting news coming your way.....

Show 13 - Lucky For Me !

2005-11-21T19:21:00.001Z

Lucky Three From Leith #13 this week ! I was going to skip the number completely and go straight for 14, but I'm not superstitious. I've already had an expensive autofocus zoom lens die on me this week, though on the flipside I got a credit in the cracking new book 'The Barclay James Harvest Story' by Keith & Monika Domone. My limited-edition hardback copy, autographed the the surviving original members (including Woolly Wolstenholme, as featured in Show 7), arrived today and I'm thrilled.

Who knows, one day the artists played today could be as famous and have books about them hitting the market. From small beginnings..... Anyway, you can help them on their way by enjoying their music, feeding back to them via their websites and buying their CDs if you like what you hear from tonight's future stars:

I Catch Fire - 'Other Side Of Me'
The guys also have a mySpace page where you can hear other tracks

Slow - 'Afternoon'
Click the 'Buy Some' link on their site to find their 'Bucketful of Wishes' EP, or find their new 'The Acoustic' EP here

Dan May - 'Still'
The man with the incredible, hypnotic voice; you can buy Dan's 'Roots & Wings' EP (featuring 'Still') and his 'Once Was Red' album at CDBaby

Background tracks on the show were 'Introvert4' by Chronos and 'Silk Route' by Satya
Thanks for staying subscribed and see you all next week !

Show 12 - Hints from the 80s

2005-11-14T20:11:00.001Z

There's more than a touch of the 80s coming through in the music from this week's excellent podsafe artists; a smidgeon of OMD, a sprinkling of New Order, a dash of Coldplay and the merest whisper of Pink Floyd. Together they make the recipe for another truly satisying ear-pleaser from Three From Leith.

Under Electric Light - Never See The Light
buy their 'Never See The Light' EP here

Windermere - Trailer Park
buy their first album 'The World Is Here', featuring 'Trailer Park', here
or get the full visual experience by downloading the 'Trailer Park' video to watch !

Without Malice - Reflex Blue
nothing for sale on their site, but you can catch them in action in their 'God Frequency' live demo video

Extra filling in the way of background music was supplied by Chronos - 'Introvert4', a.b.e (anthems of a bygone era) - 'String Groove', Derek K Miller - 'Cold Cloth and an Ice Pack' and Torchomatic - 'Raining Colours'

As always, leave a comment and let me know what you thought of the show, the music, life, the universe and everything ! And whilst you're at it, visit the artist's sites and give them feedback on their work.

Edinburgh podcast tour (including Leith)

2005-11-10T21:48:00.000Z

If you ever plan to come to Edinburgh (or just fancy imagining you're here), pop along to the Visit Scotland Edinburgh Podcast page and download their audio guide.

Or if you're really keen to find out more about Leith, scroll further down the page and you can just download the Leith part of the podcast. When the guide talks about Martin Wishart's restaurant, she's in the ground floor property of Three From Leith towers....

Dig those fake recorded footsteps !

Show 11 - Gentler Guitar Pop

2005-11-07T22:34:00.001Z

Tonight I break my own rules (if I can't as the owner/producer/presenter/ creator of this podcast, who can ?) and play four tracks. Yes, FOUR tracks. From three artists. So it's still Three From Leith in a logical way !

I also re-recorded the show's intro and outro; I think it sounds like a sonic improvement but feel free to tell me otherwise. In fact, feel free to talk about anything at all on the comments. It's nice to know that you're listening and what you think of the music or the show.

Today I played:

Whirl - Palmreader
(buy their excellent CD here)

Urban Spirits - Drowning

Whirl - Stronger

The Wraiths - November

Please support the artists - visit their sites and let them know what you think of their music; and if you really like it, why not make a purchase from them ?

Thanks for listening and staying subscribed. If you're not a subscriber, why not download one of the great free podcatchers out there (RSS Radio, iPodder, Doppler Radio etc) and subscribe to my feed ? That'll save you having to manually download the show each week or having to check to see if a new show's been posted up.

Dropkick / Slowjet Gig

2005-11-05T00:44:00.000Z

It's very late / early (delete as applicable !) and I'm just back in after a fantastic night watching Dropkick and Slowjet live. What a great evening's entertainment and I'm off to bed a very happy, very well alt-country-power-popped and rocked man. Huge thanks to Alastair from Dropkick for the CDs, drink and company and also to Andy from Slowjet, who I managed to grab a quick word with right at the end of their slot. I'm really honoured to be able to see these two bands live since I live locally, and should you ever get a chance to see either, PLEASE go along. You won't be disappointed. They're all extremely talented and musically tight musicians. And you won't believe your eyes when you see Andrew from Dropkick manage to play the drums, banjo and sing all at the same time !! Quite a feat and pulled off faultlessy. Both bands really deserve your support, so please pop along to their respective websites and do what you can by buying their music. A nicer bunch of people you could never wish to meet.

Visit Dropkick here and Slowjet here.

Libsyn down for extended period on 3rd Nov

2005-11-03T17:35:00.000Z

Sorry if you had problems trying to get any shows today (3rd Nov); Libsyn (who hosts the TFL files and the files for many thousands of other podcasts) was down for quite some time. Hopefully they're now up again permanently and normal service has been resumed.

Vote now...

2005-11-01T21:11:00.000Z

It's the start of the month so feel free to look to the right and vote for Three From Leith over at Podcast Alley !!

Show 10 - Wicked Rock !

2005-10-31T21:07:00.001Z

This show was recorded on Halloween, so maybe you'd be better to play it backwards in case the spirits left any messages there. I'm sure I heard a couple, like "My socks smell of marmalade" and "Hippo poo is good for you"... But then again, I had drunk a glass of cheap Aussie plonk with my dinner, so who knows what effect that had on my brain !

Served up for your delectation on tonight's silver salver were:

Vanton - Wyatt Earth
(Buy Vanton tracks at www.bonairerecords.com with free money on sign up - send your purchased files to friends and get paid 20% if they buy!)

Exitpilot - Strangeview
(their online shop is coming soon)

The Reverse Engineers - Mercury In Retrograde
(the podcast explaining their songs is here, or you can buy their CD 'Max Q' here)

Visit the bands' sites, make a purchase or just drop them an email. Give a little back to them for all that they have given you for free today. Even if you just leave a comment here saying what you think of their music, every little bit of feedback is appreciated.

Special thanks to Denis Kitchen for the theme music, Derek K Miller for the soundbed and my lovely assistant Jasna for the voiceovers.

Santa Dog TripleShot

2005-10-27T23:19:00.000+01:00

Today is the first of an occasional series of shows where I feature three tracks from a band whose music I have really enjoyed. First to feature are the truly excellent Bristol-based Santa Dog, who I first played in Show 3.

1. Chemical

2. Belle De Jour

3. Katy

I'd urge you to buy the Chemical EP, which you can find on the band's website. For only £5, you'll receive a stunning gatefold-sleeved EP sent in a themed envelope in the post. It's truly a thing of beauty and a delight to receive.

Please email the band and let them know what you think of their music; they do appreciate your feedback.

My grateful thanks to Rowena, Rob, JoJo and Martin for taking the time to send me their fantastic music and for getting into the spirit of things with their commentary. Great work, girl and boys !!

The new TFL studio !

2005-10-26T22:01:00.000+01:00

Here's a glimpse of the new 'studio' setup, taken last night after completing Show 9.

Show 9 - Are You Local ?

2005-10-25T11:01:00.001+01:00

More local bands (Edinburgh & Fife) today - and a new & improved vocal sound quality which will hopefully settle and bed down over the next few shows.

So, stepping forward to join the roster of top bands deserving of your support are:

The Third Man - Silence & Noise

Douglas Kay - Moving Target

Super 8 - In The Morning

Background music was by 'Cold Cloth and an Ice Pack' by Derek K Miller

If there are any musicians out there looking for a band to join, the excellent Super 8 are looking for anyone who can play Trip's music exactly as it's written. If you're a guitarist, keyboard player, bassist or drummer then get in touch with the guys at super8@super8music.com

Once again, if you like anything you hear then please head over to the artists' sites and tell them so. If they have anything for sale, then help them continue their excellent work by making a purchase.

This week's show date

2005-10-24T22:19:00.000+01:00

I've been promised delivery of my mic & mixer etc tomorrow so I'm going to hold off recording the vocals for this week's show in the hope that I'll be set up in time to get them done and the show up tomorrow night (25th).

Some good stuff coming, so stay subscribed !

Show 8 - Music with rocks in !

2005-10-19T17:00:00.001+01:00

There's a slightly rockier feel to the show this week so settle back, shake your
hair loose (if you have any left), dust off the air guitar and get ready to play...

The Brothers (N)  -  Sparks

Emergency Red  -  Hurricanes

Barely Hi-Fi  -  Walking All Day

Background music was Dirty Diamonds by The Brothers (N)

Apologies for the rushed nature of the vocals - I got my new PC on Saturday but
l'm still trying to set it up properly ! I was hoping to record the vocals directly
into Audacity but for some reason the mic signal was very quiet and the sound was
phasing. I wasted an inordinate amount of time faffing about with various recording
and sound settings before throwing in the towel and reverting back to recording
using my iRiver. Of course, by that time it was getting late and I had to get them
finished so I rushed them out. Sorry !

Hopefully when my real soundcard arrives and I install it things will sort
themselves out.  That coupled with my new mic & mixer (now hopefully being
delivered next Tues) should see a huge jump in the vocal quality. Fingers
crossed, eh ?!

It may also allow me to spend more time rambling rather than just giving you a
quick band bio each week.... consider yourselves forewarned !

Finally, as always, if you liked anything you heard then please visit the band(s)
involved and tell them you heard them on Three From Leith. I know they're always
pleased to hear what listeners think.

Show 7 - Woolly Wolstenholme Triple-Shot

2005-10-12T22:39:00.001+01:00

As promised in TFL#6, this is an extra show to showcase three tracks from "Grim", the new album by Woolly Wolstenholme's Maestoso.

Woolly was the keyboard player and a founder member of Barclay James Harvest. He left the band in 1979, had a short solo career and then left the music scene for organic farming.

In 1998, he made a welcome return to play on John Lees' solo album "Nexus" when BJH went on 'sabbatical' (in reality the band were no more), then toured with John on the 'Revival' tour. A planned second album was shelved, so Woolly released the first 'Maestoso' album, "One Drop In A Dry World" in May 2004, a raw live CD "Fiddling Meanly", closely followed by "Grim".

The album reunites the original 1980 Maestoso band of Woolly, Steve Broomhead (guitars) and Kim Turner (drums), along with regular bassist Craig Fletcher.

Woolly has just started work on the next John Lees' Barclay James Harvest album, which will be followed by a tour.

Tracks played:

Coming Soon To A Cinema Near You
Through A Storm
A Lark

Huge thanks go to Woolly and the band for the incredible music, Vicky at Eclectic Discs for giving me permission to play the tracks and Keith & Monica Domone of the International BJH Fan Club for the best website and fan community on the web.

If you want to get a hold of the CD before it hits the shops in November, you can order it from Keith & Monica here.

www.bjharvest.co.uk

www.woollywolstenholme.co.uk

www.eclecticdiscs.com

Show 6 - Robots, Pyjamas & Storytellers

2005-10-10T22:06:00.001+01:00

Another week, another selection of truly incredible podsafe music. Thanks to all of the artists and listeners who've been contacting the show to provide info, feedback and more music for you to enjoy in the coming weeks.

Today's artists were:

Phideaux - Have You Hugged Your Robot ?
(You can find out more about Phideaux on his MySpace page, and order his CDs from CDBaby or Amazon.)

Dropkick - Chastity Pyjamas
(You'll find their CDs to order on their site)

Deadenstereo - Storyteller
(Contact the guys via their website to get hold of this single, and make sure you also visit their MySpace page.)

I also asked if anyone would consider supporting Richard Barr's 'India Motorcycle Challenge' in aid of the charities, “The Down’s Syndrome Association”, and the special needs school, “Woolgrove”. Please read his very personal reason for doing this and donate what you can.

There's also terrible tragedy unfolding in nothern India and Pakistan following the earthquake there. Donations can be made via the following links:

Unicef

www.unicef.org

Oxfam

www.oxfam.org.uk

World Food Programme

www.wfp.org

Kashmir International Relief Fund

www.kirf.org

Red Cross/ Red Crescent

www.ifrc.org

Thanks again for subscribing, downloading and listening to the show. Keep the feedback coming both here and to the artists - it gives us the encouragement to keep on doing what we're doing.

NEWSFLASH ! - coming very soon, an exclusive podcast play of some of the tracks from the new Woolly Wolstenholme album 'Grim'. Woolly was the keyboard player in world-reknowned Barclay James Harvest, who were at the forefront of British prog rock in the 70s and 80s. You'll only hear it here on Three From Leith !

Show 5 - The Hits Show

2005-09-30T23:56:00.001+01:00

Three songs this week that all deserve to be massive. You'll catch yourself singing along very quickly to every one, and the melodies will stick with you and play away in the back of your mind for a long time to come.

Ladies and gentlemen, please be upstanding for tonight's star acts:

David William - Come & Go

Lena - Step On The Gas

Amplifico - Combing My Soul For More

Once again, if you liked anything you heard on Show 5, please visit the artists' websites and drop them a note telling them. Be sure to mention that Three From Leith sent you !

Apologies for the noise during my discussion of Lena - I have to record the vocals into my iRiver as my old Pentium 2 antique can't cope with 'live' recording, and occasionally the hard drive spins up to speed and causes a bit of a whine which is picked up by the mic.

(Since recording this week's show, I had the following further information from Lena's collaborator / writing partner Niclas Johannesen:

"[Lena's album is] released in Denmark on October 17. Can also tell you that Step On The Gas has been released as radio single in Denmark and is added at playlists on both the biggest stations P3 and P4 on national Danish Radio (DR) and it's on hot rotation at a commercial station called Radio Mojn in Southern Jutland."

)

Show 4 - The Edinburgh Bands

2005-09-26T23:57:00.002+01:00

This time it's local....

Everything's been done in a bit of a rush this week as life has managed to get in the way and alter my usual plans. But nevertheless the Three From Leith podcast is proud to bring you three Edinburgh bands who've really opened my eyes.

I'm amazed at the wealth and breadth of the talent that exists here in Edinburgh. I knew there were bands playing, but I didn't know just how professional and talented they were ! I'd been sitting here thinking that most of the talent was based in Glasgow after listening to what Mark at the Tartanpodcast was showcasing. I couldn't have been more wrong ! That'll teach me to be so blind to what's going on around me...

I'm therefore really happy to be able to bring these bands to the fore and to get them out there. So if you're a band based in or around Edinburgh, or know someone who's in one, drop me a line and introduce yourself / yourselves. Why not email me a track or send me a CD (email me for the address). There are more local band shows coming soon on Three From Leith, so make sure you book your place on them !

So please enjoy the following bands, and if you like what you hear please visit the artists' websites and drop them a line. I know that they'd be chuffed to bits to hear from you and what you think of their music - so go on; make their day ! Tell 'em that Grant from Three From Leith sent you...

Triptamine - I Am Abstract

Opal Sky - Special Suzie

Slowjet - Black Cross

Special thanks to Denis Kitchen for the background music (Cebrella) and intro (Groove IT)

There will definitely be a lot more coming from Edinburgh bands soon, plus something very special which will be exclusive to Three From Leith, so stay subscribed and don't miss it !

And remember to leave your comments below and let me know what you think. Say something. I dare ya !!

My Odeo Channel (odeo/93fd212656195c9e)

Show 3 - Finding a voice...

2005-09-19T23:10:00.001+01:00

In which Tigger tries to find his voice, and Piglet tries to help him

This week I thought I should try and overcome my natural shyness and talk a wee bit more. Of course, sitting talking to yourself doesn't help when it comes to being a bit more chatty. We east-coast Scots are brought up only to speak when spoken to; so blethering to fresh air comes as a bit of a challenge !

I was ably assisted by my gorgeous assistant Jasna, in whose 5yr-old eyes I'm just the best !

Let me know what you think; should I:

(a) keep talking, or

(b) sit back, let the music do all the talking and refer you to the bands' websites through the shownotes so you can find out about them for yourselves ?

I'm torn - I like the flow of the music when it's completely uninterrupted, but when I listen to podcasts I like to know who's playing whilst I listen. And talking of who's playing, tonight you heard from:

The Rantings of Eva - Infrared

Karma - Life

Santa Dog - Delicate

If you liked any of the artists you heard on the show, please go to their website and drop them a note telling them. Remember to mention where you heard their music ! Keep on supporting them; without their dedication, hard work and talent you'd be listening to 15 minutes of silence.

Please also leave comments here on the site if you have anything to say about what you think of the show, good or bad. It's your words that encourage me to keep podcasting.

(apologies for the rather noisy speech this week; the mic was brushing on my shirt !)

Comments problem resolved

2005-09-16T15:43:00.000+01:00

I've been made aware that there was a problem which was preventing people from posting comments on the site (thanks Kari and Gabor !) Hopefully this has now been resolved - apologies for that. Of course, if you still have a problem please email me.

Finniston spotlight show

2005-09-16T10:00:00.000+01:00

The excellent Glasgow band Finniston, who I played on show #2, had a spotlight show recently on the Tartanpodcast. Pure aural bliss ! Listen to it here. They've also got a new EP coming out on the 20th September, so start saving now !

Show 2

2005-09-13T09:34:00.001+01:00

Welcome to Three From Leith #2 ! Recorded on a beautiful, sunny Autumn day (and we don't get many of those in Scotland !) in 'Leith Sur Mer', with the birds twittering outside, there was only one song to kick it off -

Kasino - Sunshine

Feeling slightly more relaxed and mellow as the sun sank, I settled - for your listening pleasure - on:

Finniston - Peace of Mind

And as the darkness settled like a blanket over the Shore, it was time to crank it up and get raucous with:

el Dog - Glass of Water

If you liked any of the music in the show, please drop by the artists' sites and tell them, or perhaps help support them and purchase their CD. Be sure and mention that you heard them here on Three From Leith.

Your comments on today's show are welcome; either leave them here or email them to threefromleith@gmail.com If there are any bands listening who'd like to send their music in for future shows, email me a file with the word Submission in the subject line. Alternatively, if you know of any bands who might be interested, please let them know.

Finally, huge thanks to Gary from Kasino (visit his excellent blog Bigmouth Strikes Again), Mark at the Tartanpodcast for his help and support, and to Denis Kitchen for the theme music, Groove IT.

See you all again next week.

Show No.1

2005-09-08T01:03:00.001+01:00

The first show ! For bandwidth reasons, please download it rather than streaming it directly from this site.

Tonight I featured:

Intro music:
Denis Kitchen - Groove IT

The Artists were:

Hotrod Cadets - My Heart Sinks
Geoff Martin - Bring Me Down
echograph - Break Me Down

I don't think there's anything to be read into the track titles ! If you have any comments, suggestions or are a band with music you'd like to submit, email the show at threefromleith@gmail.com