Tonight is the fifth revue show that spoken word promoters Flint and Pitch have hosted at the Bongo Club in Edinburgh. Fantastic performers have featured at these popular events in the past, by tonight’s lineup may well be the strongest.
The evening kicks off with Glasgow based musician Josephine Sillars. She recently performed her own spoken word and music show in Edinburgh (Ripped From The Wire Spine) and her strong voice and knack for a good pop song is the perfect opening for the evening.
The first spoken word performer tonight is another Glasgow based artist, Kevin P. Gilday. He is a regular on the spoken word scene in Scotland and hosts the Sonnet Youth night in Glasgow. He begins with a poem about pornography and keeps the tone and comedy going throughout his slot. Kevin’s poetry walks the line between humour and thoughtful and personal work. The strength and power in his words is obvious in all the poems he performs during his ten minute set.
The first section concludes with a short and mesmerising set from solo musician Craig Lithgow. He performs under the name Mummy’s Boy and his music has been compared to Leonard Cohen. His strong voice and the depth of his lyrics proves the comparison is not too far off and Lithgow is definitely a musician to look out for.
Jackie Kay has been Scotland’s Makar for over a year now and she seems to be loving every minute of it. She is a mix of energy and excitement and performs a selection of old and new poems with a beaming smile that lights up The Bongo Club. Jackie feels at home in this relaxed setting and really should return to Edinburgh during the Fringe. As with Kevin P. Gilday she gets the tone of the evening spot on and her infectious stage presence would go down a storm during the Festival season.
After another interval the final third begins with the Introducing slot, which is taken by the excellent spoken word artist Katharine Macfarlane. She begins by singing a traditional lament and then keeps the audience engaged by telling a story around Donald Trump’s mother and her Scottish heritage.
Josephine Sillars returns to close the Flint and Pitch Revue with more piano infused pop and marks the end to an enjoyable evening. Flint and Pitch have another Revue show coming up in May along with a showcase at the Hidden Door Festival, a spoken word theatre show from Katherine McMahon and a Variety Night at the Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh follows in June. The amount of fantastic work that Flint and Pitch programme underlines the strength of the Scottish spoken word scene at the moment.