FRETS 2026
THE BLUEBELLS / Sunday 25th Oct
SANDFEST Tickets: https://dsscotland.org.uk/dss_events/eventsandfest2026/
SANDFEST TICKETS: https://dsscotland.org.uk/dss_events/eventsandfest2026/
SandFest 2026 is a concert that raises funds for Down’s Syndrome Scotland, and will take place on Sunday 25th October in the Strathaven Hotel. The Bluebells will be performing live, with Choir 21 opening the show with a special guest support slot. The concert is for everyone ages 12 and up. Doors open at 6.30pm, with Choir 21 on at 7pm.
SandFest is curated by Katy Lironi and Douglas MacIntyre, the concerts originated in their back garden in 2007 with the aim to fundraise for Down’s Syndrome Scotland (DSS). The Bluebells are great friends of Down’s Syndrome Scotland and Choir 21, with vocalist Ken McCluskey being a Down’s Syndrome Scotland ambassador and Ken and Douglas being patrons and regular performers with the Choir.
The concert ran at Sandford Village Hall for 10 years and in 2018 it moved to the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow to help DSS raise funds for the World Down Syndrome Congress.
After the Covid Pandemic, the concert moved to the Strathaven Hotel, a lovely country house hotel in the Lanarkshire town, where it will be hosted again in 2026.
It promises to be an unforgettable night of music – we hope you can join us there!
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TICKETS: https://wegottickets.com/f/29365
GEORGIO VALENTINO and special guest MALCOLM ROSS // Friday 6th Nov
The Institute at Anderson’s
Glasgow
G1 5QT
Georgio Valentino: pseudonymous rock singer, noisemaker, scribbler, acquired taste.
The errant Floridian, currently based between Athens and Berlin, is known in some circles for his solo forays in lofi noir; in others for his longstanding collaborations with Blaine L. Reininger, Mick Harvey and Amanda Acevedo; and in yet others for his sentence as multi-instrumentalist in Crime & the City Solution. He returns to Scotland in the fall to peddle his solo collection, Devenir Imperceptible.
Joining GV (vocal/guitar) on stage are Gavin Fraser (bass), Ross Wilson (drums) and special guest Malcolm Ross (guitar).
Be there.
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TICKETS: https://wegottickets.com/f/29560
Mackenzies follow the release of the debut album A Dog’s Breakfast with a Glasgow concert on Saturday 28th November at the Glad Cafe (with special guests The Port Sulphur Group).
The debut album has only taken Mackenzies 40 years to record and release – they announced themselves with their only single (New Breed), released on Ron Johnson Records in 1986. Mackenzies also had a track (Big Jim) on the legendary NME cassette, C86, released the same year.
A Dog’s Breakfast has received considerable critical acclaim since its release on the Last Night From Glasgow label, it highlights their updated dislocated avant-funk (as featured on two John Peel sessions broadcast on BBC Radio 1 in 1986). BBC 6Music has continued carrying the torch for Mackenzies, playing tracks from the album on several shows.
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FRETS 2027
THRUM.
RADHIKA & special guest JILL BRYSON.
QUAD90.
Live in concert at Oran Mor, Glasgow, on Friday 15th Jan as part of the Celtic Connections festival.
TICKETS:
https://www.celticconnections.com/event/1/thrum-with-quad90-and-radhika/
Celtic Connections presents a triple bill of pan-generational female artists releasing music with an independent aesthetic (Thrum / Radhika with special guest Jill Bryson / QUAD90).
THRUM
Emerging from Scotland’s rich alternative music scene in the mid-1990s, Thrum quickly established themselves with their distinctive blend of country rock, folk and Neil Young-inspired guitar music. Contemporaries of Americana pioneers The Jayhawks and Wilco, the band’s acclaimed debut album Rifferama became a defining record of its era.
At the heart of Thrum are vocalist Monica Queen and guitarist Johnny Smillie. Queen’s unmistakable voice has featured on Belle and Sebastian’s Lazy Line Painter Jane, while she has also sung with artists including Shane MacGowan and Snow Patrol.
In 2026, Rifferama was reissued and remastered by the legendary independent label Fire Records, home to artists including The Lemonheads, Maria McKee, Bevis Frond and Kristin Hersh. The release received widespread acclaim and sparked a sold-out UK tour, bringing Thrum’s music to a new generation.
For Celtic Connections, Thrum return with their trademark combination of crunching guitars, soaring vocals and folk-rock storytelling, revisiting songs from Rifferama alongside new material.
RADHIKA (& special guest JILL BRYSON) 2026 saw Radhika release a debut album on the Glass Modern label. Cine-Pop is a collection of songs that spans generations and continents but its home is always Radhika and the family jams she made with her father Sushil K. Dade (Future Pilot AKA). In different moments other musicians appear – most notably key collaborator, Eric Macdonald, on hazy synth and keys, and Radhika’s mother Vinita, who has a gorgeous voice too.
The Glasgow School is very present – Mitch Mitchell (The Pastels) , Gerard Love (Lightships/ ex-Teenage Fanclub) and Tracyanne Campbell (Camera Obscura) all bring their casual magic to the table.
Radhika’ performance at Celtic Connections will feature special guest collaboration with Jill Bryson (Strawberry Switchblade) as well as her regular crew of musicians including Sushil K Dade (Bass/electronics), Paul Thomson (Drums), Eric Macdonald and Rhea Marchetti on keys and leading the group Radhika Meera Dade on guitar and vocals.
QUAD90
Amelia Lironi and Naomi Mackay formed QUAD90 after meeting at university and discovering their shared love of disco, especially the Chic-produced Diana album by Miss Ross. They hooked up with producer Samuel Joseph Smith and recorded their first single – Le Blank (a homage to outre-disko producer Bob Blank) – which sold out its limited edition one-sided 10” release on the Last Night From Glasgow label.
QUAD90 has received considerable radio support from indie shows which helped with the independent chart success of the eponymously titled debut album (released on the Last Night From Glasgow label). The album contained a cover version of the James Chance no wave classic Contort Yourself, which highlighted the QUAD90 debt to New York label, Ze Records.
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RICKY WARWICK – SOLD OUT
Ricky Warwick will be in concert at the Strathaven Hotel early next year. It’s going to be special – if you saw him last year you’ll know it’s going to be amazing.
Tickets sold out quickly, if you are interested in putting your name on the waiting list here’s the ticket link: https://wegottickets.com/f/28247
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AVOID SCAMMERS TRYING TO SELL TICKETS ON SOCIAL MEDIA – THEY ARE TRYING TO CON YOU OUT OF YOUR MONEY.
FRETS CONCERTS was established by Strathaven musician Douglas MacIntyre. The first concert took place in the Strathaven Hotel on 4th October, 2019, with Lloyd Cole performing an acoustic set accompanied by Commotions guitarist Neil Clark. The ethos at FRETS is very much geared towards a seated and listening audience, with the onus on live performance and songwriting. The artists really appreciate performing to an attentive audience, magic is invariably in the air. Our dream concert would be Neil Young with an acoustic guitar and harmonica performing his On The Beach album, or Bill Callahan performing any of his albums. We look forward to welcoming you to the Strathaven Hotel for an evening at FRETS.
FRETS is a seated venue within the Strathaven Hotel, doors usually open at 7pm with seats taken on a ‘first-come-first-seated’ basis. We usually have two support artists, with live performances commencing shortly after doors open. All tickets are paperless and sold via the Concert Tickets section of this website, you do not need to print your tickets, simply show us your tickets on your phone.
The concerts usually finish by 10.30pm, though the bar in the hotel is open late if you want to have a drink and a chat. Lots of FRETS attendees stay over at the hotel and have a meal in the resturant prior to the concert, more details about the Strathaven Hotel here. https://www.strathavenhotel.com/
If you re not already on the mailing list, go to the Blog section of this website and submit your email address to keep up to date. We have a couple of big announcement forthcoming and will be emailing to our mailing list soon.
In line with other live music promoters and entertainment events we operate a no refunds policy.
https://twitter.com/FRETSCONCERTS / https://www.facebook.com/fretsconcerts
FRETS is supportive of car-sharing as an option to travel to the Strathaven Hotel. If this isn’t possible, Climate Action Strathaven are now operating buses to and from Strathaven. The last bus to run from Glasgow to Strathaven is 9.15pm from North Hanover St (George Square). For more information about Climate Action Strathaven please visit their website: https://castrathaven.org/
PLEASE CHECK WITH CLIMATE ACTION STRATHAVEN WHERE THE BUS LEAVES GLASGOW FROM AS THERE ARE CURRENTLY ROAD WORKS.
Please note there are no direct buses running from Strathaven to coincide with FRETS concerts finishing around 10.30pm. There are trains from Hamilton to Glasgow, however a taxi would be required to be booked from the hotel to Hamilton. There are two taxi firms in Strathaven, here are their details:
Stevie’s Taxis / 01357 – 528888
Strathaven Taxis / 01357 – 522522
PLEASE BE CAREFUL – THERE ARE SCAMMERS OUT THERE WHO WILL OFFER TO SELL YOU TICKETS ONLINE VIA TWITTER OR FACEBOOK. THIS IS A RIP OFF. PLEASE ONLY BUY TICKETS FROM THE WEGOTTICKETS LINKS, IF THE CONCERT SELLS OUT JOIN THE WAITING LIST AT THE WEGOTTICKETS LINK.
