An American musician says she is ready for the most unique show of her life – as she and the rest of her rock group get ready to perform at HMP Barlinnie.
Nicole Laurenne and the garage-rock band The Darts have played a number of different venues across mainland Europe from a party boat in Germany, a street corner in France, to a public park in Italy.
The band’s track Love U 2 Death was featured in the BBC’s hit historical crime drama Peaky Blinders – but now the band are set to come face to face with real criminals on Thursday afternoon.
Nicole, who says she was in heaven after meeting Scottish fans, says the quirky European shows don’t compare with the prospect of performing at Glasgow’s infamous nick on Thursday afternoon.
Nicole told the Record the show came about due to a suggestion by their promoter – and that there was no way she could knock back the opportunity.
She explained: “Promoter Colin Duff assists our (very overworked) booking agency Adrenalin Fix Music with booking all of our Scotland shows.
“Colin suggested we play there and – maybe against our better judgement? – I couldn’t help but say yes. When will we ever have such an opportunity again in our lives?
“I am looking forward to bringing a bit of rock and fun to a bunch of people who could probably use some bright moments. My expectations are pretty much blank – I am going to try to wait and live in the moment when it happens.
“I’ve no idea what the attendance will be, or whether attendance is mandatory! But from what I’ve read about other bands’ shows there, it sounds like part of a reward/rehabilitation effort for the population, which I wholly support on a deep level philosophically.
“I’ve never ever done anything like this before. This is a far cry from playing in a public park in Italy or on a party boat in Germany, both of which we have done recently.
“We played on a street corner in France once also, but it’s still no comparison. We had sold out shows last year in Scotland and our show at The Voodoo Rooms in Edinburgh was epic!
“So many cool people came, including BBC radio DJ Vic Galloway, who incredibly now plays us on his show, and the venue was absolutely beautiful.
“The accents at the merch table, which I handle myself every night, were of course gorgeous and sometimes impossible to understand but I was in heaven meeting everyone.”
Organist and vocalist Nicole is the driving force behind the group, who are heading to Leith Depot in Edinburgh for a nighttime slot after tomorrow’s jail set.
The Darts touring line-up often changes due to the tough schedule – with the current tour having began in Sacramento, California, in April – but the current line-up is Nicole, Louise Sordoillet on guitar, Christina Nunez on bass, and Mary Rose Gonzales on drums.
Scottish Prison Service was asked for comment by the Record.
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