HERE'S what you can get up to this week...
1. Hip-hop king Kendrick Lamar brings his Big Steppers tour to the Hydro in Glasgow on Wednesday and the excitement is palpable. If his headlining slot at Glastonbury during the summer was anything to go by, expect high drama, theatrical staging, jaw-dropping dancers and super big tunes. The rapper is currently at the top of his game and one of the most innovative and thoughtful acts of his generation. Ovo Hydro, Wednesday, doors open 6.30pm.
2. Rob Beckett made his name as the co-host of the ITV2 spin-off from I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! Now! But he’s at his best on stage. His new show, Wallop, has been winning great reviews, and follows on from Mouth Of The South, which was so popular it was extended for two years through 2015 to 2017. Music Hall, Aberdeen, Wednesday.
3. Ladysmith Black Mambazo. It was Paul Simon’s classic Gracelands album which introduced the South African vocal group to the mainstream, but it’s their fantastic and tireless work ever since that has won them – and their shows – legendary status. Expect to hear some of the standout cuts from the album that made them famous, as well as an astonishing range of music from their own albums. Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Wednesday, 7.30pm.
4. Edinburgh Short Film Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year with a strong programme incorporating period drama, funny and charming documentaries, intense thrillers and edgy Scottish comedy. The festival opened on Friday and runs until November 13 at various venues throughout the city. More information at https://www.edinburghshortfilmfestival.com.
5. Squeeze bring their hits-packed show to Glasgow tomorrow (Monday, October 31) as part of a tour supporting the Trussell Trust which provides food and support for those people most in need of it. As if the thought of hearing Cool For Cats, Trusted, Up The Junction, Labelled With Love et al wasn’t enough, the support act of the tour is the amazing John Cooper Clarke, whose poetry made an impact during the heady days of punk and continues to make a strong impact to this very day. Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, tomorrow, 7pm.
6. James IV – Queen of the Fight. The fourth in a series of plays that began with James I, Rona Munro’s latest work lays bare the machinations and personal alliances and animosities in the court of the 16th-century monarch. Laurie Sansom’s fluid and forthright staging "turns a drama of fear and favour into something bleak and unsettling", says The Guardian. Eden Court, Inverness, Wednesday until Saturday.
7. Psychedelic pioneers The Grateful Dead became legendary because of the length of their shows and their improvisations. The band – or what’s left of them – are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the legendary Europe ‘72 album by bringing the previously unreleased Tivoli Concert Hall performance from April 1972 to the big screen. Fully restored and colour corrected in high definition with audio mixed from the 16-track analog master tapes, the film features nearly an hour and a half of the Grateful Dead at the peak of their performing career. It’s showing at the Robert Burns Centre at Dumfries on Tuesday and local author John Kilbride, who wrote The Golden Road – The Recorded History of The Grateful Dead, will introduce the film and give some insight to the Dead's historic '72 tour.
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