Tuesday night in Dundee generally doesn’t have much going on in comparison to other cities around the world or Scotland for that matter. In Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Inverness (and perhaps more cities, I’m not sure), you can go out any night of the week and find something amazing. From small snugs with intimate performances to great halls with huge productions, but for some reason, it is to a much lesser extent in our city. Not through lack of exceptional talent nor beautiful spaces, both of which are abundant, but perhaps a symptom of increased access to free music or TikTok stars and aged rockstars charging hundreds for a 3-hour stadium show. For the price of one stadium gig, you can go to 20-30 amazing gigs, and you don’t even have to travel or stay overnight somewhere.
I went to Roots in the basement of Conroy’s on Tuesday with my friend to see Archie Dye and three support acts. It was £7, but the value for us, and for the artists, was worth a price that cannot be set.
The night started with Edenbank whose EP review can be found here on Bonnie Scotland Presents. Seeing them live added a whole new level. I honestly could not figure out how John’s guitar sounded so good. He was modest but solid and created a beautiful, elegant space for Ashley’s vocals to soar and land with the listener. There is a clear music connection between these two, which is so important for birthing something new and special between two creatives.
If you’ve been out in Dundee over the last few years, the chances are you’ve seen Johnny Scullion perform your favourite songs while you catch up with your friends. He was on second and was joined by Bruce on guitar, who provided some sweet guitar licks and even a couple of his own songs. The pair played a selection of Johnny’s original songs, which he told me afterwards he had been nervous about, as he’s used to playing covers. Honestly, he did not need to be nervous. Johnny has a great voice and is a strong performer, so I’m excited to see him develop his original song set.
Then Archie’s older brother and local legend Marley Davidson took to the stage and absolutely smashed it. He was his usual unashamed self, playing incomprehensible piano and electronic tunes about space travel and other sci-fi and fantasy themes. There was a hilarious moment of crowd interaction when Marley quite rightly called out someone who’d forgotten to put their phone on silent and had decided to check their TikTok. Marley brought his whole self to the stage, his ethereal piano playing, his evocative voice, and his personality unmarred by stage fright or cringe. As it absolutely should be.
Archie finished the night to rapturous applause. He started his set on his brother’s piano and moved onto acoustic guitar. The audience was made up of family, friends, local musicians, and music fans chanting his lyrics back to him. His natural charisma was with him on stage throughout, much like his brother’s, and yet completely different and utterly himself. Again, there were some hilarious interactions between Archie, his brother, and his mum, and the audience. These are ours though. We who attended saw something special and unrepeatable. Archie’s song Sarah was the euphoric indie climax of the night (aside from a cheeky encore), and it felt great to witness the sheer joy on his face as we chanted his lyrics.
These gigs are so special, and they are what create the most important artists history has to offer. Without local gigs in grassroots venues, great music cannot thrive as it has over the last 100 years. Artists need to perform in rooms that have people in them, to feel their reactions and hone their skills, to develop their sense of self in the context of the stage, to practice using mics and amplified sound, and to be seen and heard as they grow, so they can build real, meaningful relationships with people who listen to their music. So sure, go spend £200 on your favourite artist who will perform the exact same set every night. Each special moment is planned and timed to trick you into believing you saw something no one else did, but the real magic happens in the spaces that cost the same as a coffee. I see far more value in these gigs than any other. Please follow Roots Dundee on social media and follow local Dundonians who are already making great music or are still developing their skills, so you can keep an eye on what’s happening. This is where the magic is.
