Chemikal Underground

In February 2021 the supremely talented Alison Eales blogged for us about the process of recording her debut album Mox Nox during lockdown, and last year it was released to rave reviews. Alison has been busy and is back with her new four-track EP Four for a Boy  due for release on March 8th from…

There is nobody quite – or even remotely – like Ivor Cutler, the great Glaswegian sage, storyteller and songwriter who starred as lugubrious bus conductor Buster Bloodvessel in The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour movie, recorded more John Peel sessions than any other act (apart from The Fall) and could often be seen on late night…

It may have come to your attention that the mighty Franz Ferdinand are poised to return with a new line-up. The band’s latest configuration features Julian Corrie, aka synth pop maestro Miaoux Miaoux, on keyboards and vocals and Dino Bardot, once of glam indie pop trio 1990s, on guitar. They also have a brand spanking new…

So we’ve heard from Malcolm Middleton. Now the other half of the Arab Strap partnership, frontman Aidan Moffat, tells us about reviving lyrics he wrote twenty years ago and what we can expect from this weekend’s gigs. “There’s a full set and hopefully we’ll find some requests. We’re going to have a wee box where you can post them…

Cult heroes Arab Strap have reformed ten years after they first split in order to celebrate their 20th birthday. An eponymous compilation of their singles, plus “secret hits and rarities” is out now on Chemikal UndergroundRecords, the esteemed Glasgow label who signed them in 1996 on the strength of a demo tape. The duo – Aidan Moffat on vocals and…

Glasgow is a great place for music. But don’t take our word for it – listen to what some of the city’s musicians have to say on the subject… Today we’re releasing the second in a series of (very) short films we’ve put together, featuring Glasgow musicians talking about making music and going to gigs in town. In the hotseat this time, we’re beyond delighted to have Frances McKee, one half of the continuing legend that is The Vaselines. Are you sitting comfortably…? Huge thanks once again to Sir Scott Paterson, director, interviewer and general man behind the camera for all of these films. We’ll be putting up another little video soon…watch this space! Meanwhile, you can check out our other clips here including the first film in this series, with Teenage Fanclub’s Francis Macdonald.

One of our favourite Glasgow singers, Emma Pollock, is poised to release her latest solo album, In Search Of Harperfield, on Chemikal Underground Records, the fine, fine indie label which she set up with her bandmates in The Delgados way back in 1995 and which paved the way for so many other DIY labels and projects in…