Glasgow Sessions

Special Annoucement

In this special announcement episode of Glasgow Sessions, host Richard Lee is joined by Dev McMath to reflect on how the project has grown over the past few months - and where it’s heading next. What started as a grassroots platform for live music and spoken word has quickly evolved into something bigger: a growing cultural archive of voices, scenes, and stories from across Glasgow. With more artists reaching out and more listeners tuning in, the conversation turns to what that growth means, and how Glasgow Sessions can continue to develop. Together, Richard and Dev discuss the vision behind the project, the idea of documenting the city in a meaningful way, and why now feels like the right time to expand. This episode also marks a call-out to creatives across Glasgow - especially editors, videographers, and collaborators - who want to be part of building something that represents the city on a wider, international stage. Follow Dev McMath: @devmcmath Follow Glasgow Sessions: @glasgowsessions

Episode #20 - Ash-Lee De Haldevang

Ash-Lee De Halevang joins us for a fiercely honest conversation about identity, transience, and finding home after a childhood stretched between London, East Lothian, Singapore, Malaysia, Cornwall, and now Glasgow. We talk about growing up dyslexic and uprooted, Warrior Cats as a gateway into reading, and the moment a single creative writing exercise catapulted Ash from bottom set to top set and set them on the path to becoming a writer. Ash traces her journey from early filmmaking into poetry, the “real university” of open mics, and a three-year commitment to writing a poem a day. We dig into influences like Audre Lorde, Gil Scott-Heron, John Cooper Clarke, Savannah Brown, and hip hop, and what they taught Ash about voice, politics, and performance. There’s frank discussion of mental health, dyslexia, and the feedback loop of sad poetry – as well as how community, mentorship (including Mothtales and Phil Thomson), and spaces like Loud Poets, the Lilac Collective, and Glasgow’s spoken word scene helped Ash find a more sustainable, communal way of making art. We also talk about working across poetry, scripts, and film, and how an idea finds its form. A central thread is gender identity and trans rights: Ash shares the story of coming out as transgender to her parents last October, how that moment reshaped her relationship to their work, and what it means to create as a trans poet in the current political climate. This episode contains personal reflections on mental health and one poem that engages with real-world politics, including corporate complicity in war. Listener discretion advised. Follow the show on Instagram: @glasgowsessions Listen to Glasgow Sessions on Podbean, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.

Episode #19 - Peter Brown / ’Pete The Street’

Peter Brown - Pete the Street | Glasgow Sessions If you've ever walked through the city and spotted someone standing at an easel in the pouring rain - no umbrella, no shelter, just paint and canvas - there's a good chance you've just met this week's guest. Peter Brown, known as Pete the Street, is one of Britain's most celebrated plein air painters. For over thirty years he's stood on pavements from Bath to London to New York - and increasingly, right here in Glasgow - painting everyday life exactly as it unfolds, in all weathers, never from a photograph, always in the thick of it. He's a Past President of the New English Art Club, Banksy chose him to feature in Cut & Run at the GoMA, and just recently he was on Union Street painting the Glasgow station fire as it happened while the TV cameras filmed him doing it. In this episode we talk about building a career from scratch on the pavements of Bath, painting lockdown London when the streets fell silent, his Banksy collaboration, why Glasgow has gotten completely under his skin - and his forthcoming Glasgow paintings exhibition. Follow Pete: 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petethestreet1/ 🌐 Website: https://www.peterbrownneac.com/ 🖼️ Glasgow Paintings: https://www.peterbrownneac.com/glasgow/ Subscribe to Pete's newsletter at peterbrownneac.com for updates on his upcoming Glasgow exhibition. Listen to Glasgow Sessions on: 🟢 Spotify 🎵 Apple Podcasts 🟠 Amazon Music 📸 Instagram: @glasgowsessions Glasgow Sessions is a podcast celebrating the artists, musicians, poets, and creative voices of Glasgow and beyond. New episodes regularly - follow and subscribe wherever you listen.

Episode #18 - Attack / Release April 2026

Episode 18: Attack/Release at Bloc+ — Cinema Hotdogs, Ty Lumnus & A'Bear Glasgow has always been a city of sound-makers. From the basement rehearsal room to the experimental club night, this is a city that has never stopped pushing music into new territory - and Attack/Release is one of the spaces keeping that spirit fiercely alive. In this episode, we head down to Bloc+ on Bath Street for the April session of Attack/Release - a free monthly night dedicated to live experimental electronic music, founded and hosted by Fraser Rowan (aka Ty Lumnus). You'll hear three brilliant live sets from three very different artists: Cinema Hotdogs - making his Attack/Release debut and launching a brand new cassette release on the night. The latest project from producer Andrew Merrick, blending cinematic soundscapes with lo-fi electronic warmth. Ty Lumnus - Glasgow's modular synth architect and the founder of this very night, launching his new album Resonances in the Hidden Field on Astral Discs. Melodic dystopian soundscapes meet hypnotic, meditative ambient territory. A'Bear - a South African-born, London-based psychedelic electronic musician whose cosmic polyrhythms and warped basslines create something you feel as much as hear. Bloc+ has been one of Scotland's most vital small venues since 2001 - a place where Twin Atlantic, Frightened Rabbit, and Biffy Clyro all played early gigs before the arenas came calling. No entry fee, no barrier between you and the music, no compromise. This one's for the late-night listeners. Turn it up. Next Attack/Release: Wednesday 27th May 2026 @ Bloc+ featuring Laurie Black, Zonos, and AM Frequencies — free entry, 9–11pm. Huge thanks to James and Chris at Bloc+ for making this episode possible. Follow Attack/Release: @attackreleaseglasgow [https://www.instagram.com/attackreleaseglasgow/] Follow Glasgow Sessions: @glasgowsessions [https://www.instagram.com/glasgowsessions/] 🎧 Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music 💜 Support the podcast and help keep these conversations going: patreon.com/GlasgowSessions [https://patreon.com/GlasgowSessions]

Episode #17 - Kelvingrove Writers

Glasgow has always been a city of storytellers. From the tenement close to the poetry night, this is a city that has never stopped finding its voice - and today's guest is making sure that tradition carries on. Jess Smith is the founder of Kelvingrove Writers - a free, grassroots writing group she started in 2022 with a simple but powerful idea: that writing shouldn't be the preserve of the privileged few. That everyone, regardless of background, experience, or confidence, deserves a space to tell their story. What began as a small fortnightly circle has grown into something genuinely special. Today, Kelvingrove Writers runs regular sessions every second Monday, completely free. They've published their own anthology, run sold-out retreats, collaborated with the Scottish Working Class Network, and partnered with galleries and literary organisations right across Scotland. In this episode, we talk about how it all began, what drives Jess to keep it going, and why spaces like this are vital for the cultural life of our city. Joining Jess are members Tom, Cate, Sam, Andrew, and Molly - all brilliant writers who bring their own voices to the conversation. And woven through the episode is the beautiful sound of the Glasgow Trad Society, colouring the edges of this recording with the music of the city we're talking about. At its core, this is a conversation about belonging - about sitting down with a pen and a page, and knowing the person next to you is rooting for you. Featured in this episode: * * Jess Smith — @jessica.smxth [https://www.instagram.com/jessica.smxth/] * Tom — @toms_books [https://www.instagram.com/toms_books/] * Cate — @cate_a_b [https://www.instagram.com/cate_a_b/] * Samual Adams * Andrew * Molly — @molly.mallinder [https://www.instagram.com/molly.mallinder/] Find Kelvingrove Writers: @kelvingrovewriters [https://www.instagram.com/kelvingrovewriters/] With thanks to: @dramglasgow [https://www.instagram.com/dramglasgow/] and @glasgowuni_trad [https://www.instagram.com/glasgowuni_trad/] 🎧 Glasgow Sessions is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Music — just search Glasgow Sessions. Follow the show on Instagram: @glasgowsessions [https://www.instagram.com/glasgowsessions/] Support the podcast and help keep these conversations going: patreon.com/GlasgowSessions