
In most corners of the world this weekend, certain sections of the economy are going to receive a welcome boost. In particular, restaurants, florists, confectioners and greeting card companies should see a significant swell in their coffers as a result of all the goodwill generated by Valentine's Day. February 14 has been known as St Valentine's Day since the end of the fifth century and was called after a number of Christian martyrs who were all named Valentine. According to this site , around a billion Valentine's cards are sent around the world every year, with men spending twice [...]

Forget the jewellery, walk away from the crotchless panties, put down the designer wallet. The best Valentine's Day gifts are the ones where clearly some deep thought has gone into it, an original idea, that special personal touch. Unfortunately, this requires two qualities that not everyone acquired in the gene pool - imagination and creativity - so the next best thing is the trusty custom-made romantic mix CD, which we've just gone and made for you to download and burn onto a single CD-R. As you will no doubt have already [...]

Imagine a Scottish music festival where your don't have to pay extra to park your car or pitch your tent; where you can come and go as you please from the festival site; where children under 12 can get in for nothing; where stage times are distributed free of charge at the event; where there are designated "quiet zone" camping areas. Imagine no more - this is the BELLADRUM / TARTAN HEART FESTIVAL . So good they named it twice. Location: Beauly, Inverness-shire. [...]
Yes indeed, it is less than a week until the Leeds and Reading Festivals kick off. The New Sound. will be attending the Leeds Festival and we cannot wait! From Friday to Sunday, hundreds of good bands will be playing the festival, including a handful of really awesome ones like Rage Against The Machine , Bloc Party and Queens of the Stone Age , to name a few. Of course, for Leeds attendees, the music starts a day [...]

It seems like forever ago that we first gave you the lowdown on what music festivals to look forward to (or avoid) in Scotland this year. Back then summer seemed so far away - the days were short, drivers scraped frost off their windscreens, children built snowmen. It was nearly May after all. Seeing as the current heatwave - that's 22 degrees, folks - has turned everyone into a darker shade of pale, it's time to get back in the festival spirit with this Highland fling... What's it called? Belladrum [...]

Well I'll be damned. Howdy y'all! Excuse us for coming over all hillbilly but it's impossible not to draw your imagery pistols and grab your partner by the hand when you've just seen the next big thing... and they're a little bit country. Last night The Pop Cop ventured out to see Beerjacket's long-awaited return to the gigging scene and it was a double treat thanks to the unexpectedly impressive second band on the bill, THE WALLBIRDS . [...]