Paws + Support

Sometimes, space is the perfect catalyst for intense creativity.

Following the release of their fourth LP, 2019’s Your Church On My Bonfire, PAWS – the Scottish DIY indie rock songwriting partnership of Phillip Jon Taylor and Joshua Swinney, toured briefly, and as the world began to shut down, they slipped out of sight. Phillip retreated north to the Highlands where he focused on his painting, solo work and the rewarding demands of fatherhood. Josh headed south to London, pursuing his other passion as a chef at the highly acclaimed Plimsoll. It would have been easy for both to settle into their new lives, but PAWS never died…and neither did the tie connecting the two friends.

Having missed playing together for too long, a plan was set and in October 2022 Josh travelled to Phillip’s home studio in his Crofters cottage where work began on the band’s fifth self-titled LP. Relying on a set of phone demos and chemistry honed after years on the road the songs came together surprisingly fast. “Remembering just how much we enjoyed writing and recording together was the driving force” explains Josh. After recording previously with both Blink 182’s Mark Hoppus and Frightened Rabbit’s Andy Monaghan, the band once again seized control of production duties as they had on their second album, Youth Culture Forever. “The thing we were hoping to achieve with making this album was to be able to be creatively free and to have fun writing and recording” Josh continues. “We wanted it to happen quickly and not be a stagnant process.” Utilising all they had learned and adding their own DIY ethos into the mix, the music was done in a week. Josh headed home and Phillip set to work on the lyrics.

Support Acts:

Lloyd’s House 

Glasgow based alt-pop aficionado’s, Lloyd’s House are your new favourite band, fully embeds big pop elements to the band’s indie rock songwriting, finding the sweet spot between 90s Kerrang TV and Kylie Minogue, while nodding to sonic visionaries such as Perfume Genius and Spirit of the Beehive.

Adam Stafford

Adam Stafford is a musician and filmmaker from Falkirk. He was previously the singer in Y’all is Fantasy Island and has released a multitude of LPs since 2010 including ‘Build a Harbour Immediately’, the SAY nominated ‘Imaginary Walls Collapse’, the cinematic ‘Fire Behind the Curtain’ and most recently, ‘Daylight Slavings’. Adam composed his first feature film soundtrack in 2024 to the psychological horror ‘Blockhead’.

Tickets – £14 adv / £16 on the door
Age – 14+