Fiona Shepherd

Stamford

Columnist and Contributor at Scotland on Sunday

Music Critic at The Scotsman

Writer at Freelance

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Articles

John Legend, Glasgow review: 'supremely gifted'

1 week ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

John Legend, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★★ Is the Hydro half-empty or half-full for the opening night of John Legend’s tour? For this supremely gifted musician, it has to be the latter. Legend wasted no time urging the audience to their feet, determined to heat up the room and honour the title of the Get Lifted album, whose 20th anniversary he was marking.
'all the right poses'

1 week ago | msn.com | Fiona Shepherd

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Tate McRae, Glasgow review: 'all the right poses'

1 week ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

This was undoubtedly a slick performance from Tate McRae, but something was missing, writes Fiona ShepherdTate McRae, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★The audience decibel level was high in the Hydro for Canadian pop star Tate McRae, the 21-year-old singer/songwriter/dancer making a play as the next Dua Lipa with music which makes all the right noises, a performance which struck all the right poses and a stage set with all the right moving parts.
Olly Murs' voice gives out at Glasgow Hydro, but support band Blue in slick shape

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Blue, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★Olly Murs is celebrating 15 Years of Hits on his current tour but sadly only managed around half an hour of said hits in Glasgow before his voice gave out and he announced to a bemused audience that he would need to stop the show in order to preserve what little vocal capacity he still had for his remaining tour dates.
MAD! by Sparks review: 'fresh and audacious'

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

From where does Sparks elixir of creativity spring? The Mael brothers reach their 28th studio album sounding as fresh and audacious as they did 50 years ago. According to Ron and Russell, their modus operandi is to imagine the album they should be making at their age and stage and then produce the exact opposite.
Album reviews: Garbage | Kathryn Joseph | Jacob Alon | Mogwai

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Garbage: Let All That We Imagine Be The Light (BMG) ★★★Kathryn Joseph: WE WERE MADE PREY. (Rock Action) ★★★★Jacob Alon: In Limerence (Island/EMI) ★★★★Mogwai: The Bombing of Pan Am 103 soundtrack (Rock Action) ★★★The latest album from Garbage arrives sooner than the band anticipated, conceived while frontwoman Shirley Manson was recovering from the hip surgery that put a sudden halt to their No Gods No Masters world tour.
Rachel Fuller on creating the soundtrack for Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet: 'the whole thing has felt magical'

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Rachel Fuller’s moment of epiphany came when she wrote a children’s ballet during lockdown, she tells Fiona ShepherdWhen Pete Townsend originally wrote Quadrophenia in the early 1970s, he heard the music in his head as a fully orchestrated suite. Unable to read music, he used the (superb) instruments at this disposal – Keith Moon’s drums, John Entwistle’s bass, Roger Daltrey’s voice and his own guitar - to convey his vision.
Scissor Sisters, Glasgow review: 'naughty, touching and potent'

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Scissor Sisters, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★★★With Alison Goldfrapp as a support act and a twerking gorilla on microphone roadie duties, it was clear from the off that Scissor Sisters were open for business, and how. The ebullient New York party rockers have reunited but they haven’t reformed. This tour, marking the 20th anniversary of their eponymous debut album, was naughty, rambunctious, touching and potent.
Kylie, Glasgow review: 'it's the chemistry'

2 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Kylie, Hydro, Glasgow ★★★★The redoubtable Kylie Minogue opened the UK leg of her latest Tension tour in Glasgow suspended inside a diamond lighting effect. It’s the least her fans expect from the queen of pop theatre. The stats are this: two hours, 31 songs, seven costume changes/adaptions and somewhat less spectacle than her blockbusting tours of the Noughties.
Album reviews: Stereolab | Dr Robert & Matt Deighton | Scott C Park

3 weeks ago | scotsman.com | Fiona Shepherd

Stereolab: Instant Holograms on Metal Film (Duophonic UHF Disks/Warp) ★★★★Dr Robert & Matt Deighton: The Instant Garden (Last Night From Glasgow) ★★★★Scott C Park: Crossing the Line (self-released) ★★★★Beloved analogue synth stylists Stereolab return with their first new album in 15 years and will spend most of the second half of 2025 touring this excellent comeback record.