We’ve got an amazing line up for you this year with as many treats as you can cram into a long weekend! Expect an eclectic line-up including some new beginnings, some world class Scottish talent and just a sprinkling of musical legends… Read on below for the full line up!
Faith Charlton is a young up and coming singer/songwriter from Thurso. Faith already has a stack of performances under her belt including coming 2nd in Thurso High Battle of the Bands, local shows & school performances plus an appearance at last year’s Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival.
Faith will be opening Summer Sessions for us and we cannot wait!
Faith Charlton
Samba Sene & Diwan are based in Edinburgh with roots in Senegal, Africa and around the world. The band is an eclectic mix of musicians, led by charismatic Dakar-born singer Samba Sene. Their music is an exuberant fusion of funky mbalax/Afrobeat grooves, with undercurrents of ska, rock and Senegalese soul.
exuberant, richly layered… ★★★★ The Scotsman
top quality world music… complex yet accessible… ★★★★★ Edinburgh Spotlight
Samba Sene & Diwan
Our final band of Friday evening are Blue Giant Orkestar – a Celtic-Balkan fusion band!
Blue Giant Orkestar are a tunetastic trans-European gold-plated instrumental hydra of nuclear brass, searing fiddle, pounding tuba, one enormous Russian concert accordion and a percussion section that could flatten your house. Fuelled by Balkan horos, Serbian brass festivals, Turkish pop songs, Bulgarian accordion fireworks and even a spot of Scottish ceilidh, they play powerful and intricate originals as well as arrangements from many nations and peoples.
Blue Giant Orkestar
Scott C. Park is a singer-songwriter from the Isle of Lewis
From his house by the beach on the Isle of Lewis, Scott C. Park creates slacker rock for the faithless. Scott left home at 18 to tour with a Christian rock band, thinking this was it: the pinnacle of achievement for a young godly musician. But the closer he looked, and the more he got to see of the world, the more that faith began to fall apart.
The songs of Scott C. Park, written after this de-conversion from Christianity, are the diary of someone rebuilding the way they see the world around them; as a messy place full of love and failure that’s neither good nor bad — it just is. In its brighter moments, Scott’s music evokes the jangly guitar-pop of Pavement and MJ Lenderman, book-ended by more introspective confessionals reminiscent of Bright Eyes or Elliott Smith.
Scott C. Park
Our 2nd band of Saturday evening are Lacuna!
The six friends and musicians that make up Glasgow outfit Lacuna have been putting out steady releases since 2021, with 2024 their biggest year so far. They played sold out shows at the famous Windmill venue in Brixton, and received a nomination for Best Newcomer at the Scottish Alternative Music Awards before going on to play a sold out King Tut’s show at the start of this year as part of the venue’s New Year’s Revolution series.
The band have carved out a reputation for their rich storytelling and melodic flair, expertly crafting intricate and dynamic soundscapes that often lull the listener into a false sense of security before taking flight. With the release of their new EP ‘What If I Told You I’d been Lying The Whole Time’ and hypnotic live shows at Glasgow’s Houseguest festival and their Manchester debut with Black Honey, 2025 has been an explosive year for the folk-rock sextet.
Lacuna
We can’t quite believe this one…
Edwyn Collins is a Scottish musician, producer, and record label owner, best known as the lead singer of the 1980s post-punk band Orange Juice.
After Orange Juice disbanded, he launched a successful solo career, with his 1994 single “A Girl Like You” achieving worldwide recognition.
In September, Edwyn is heading out for his ‘Testimonial Tour – A last lap around the UK’ and we cannot believe our luck that he’s decided to include a warm up show at LAC Summer Sessions!
Watch below the second single from his brand new album ‘Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation‘
Edwyn Collins
The Fèis air an Oir Ceilidh Trail band have been brought together as part of an exciting development programme for young local musicians age 16-25. As a result of several masterclasses and training opportunities, the girls have created a dynamic programme of traditional tunes and songs which showcase all their many talents.
On fiddle we have Freya Swanson, Lexie Swanson and Camilla Elder and on accordion, Joanne Sutherland. These girls are all pupils of Wick’s own Addie Harper and Emily Morrison. Joining these fabulous musicians are Poppy Mackay from Golspie on piano, Freya Buckthorpe from Ullapool on guitar, fiddle and vocals and April Sutherland from Helmsdale on pipes and whistles.
We’re delighted to have these world class youngsters opening our final day of music at Summer Sessions!
Feis air an Oir Ceilidh Trail
Rachel Sermanni is a Scottish based singer/songwriter that makes the mundane moments mystical: shock-positive pregnancy tests in train-station toilets, coffee machine breakages, cold river swims, the regret of not saying ‘I love you’, the moon & how it pulls, bare feet on wood floors, the soft glow of a house plant, ‘what even is consciousness?’, strange dreams lingering in quiet mornings…
She brims with dreamy indie-folk pop that speaks of the struggle and desire to flow, to love, to live, to feel. Sometimes, her songs speak of the rare moments of quiet-still, found in the midst of this struggle & desire.
Rachel Sermanni
Cala grew up alongside each other in Inverness. Their debut single Causeway (2020) and first studio album From the River (2023) were inspired by a love of performing live, and of the contemporary Trad scene of Scotland they were surrounded by when they first started playing music.
Now looking to their wider influences, Two-stroke Wheelbarrow (2023) and Pillars (2024) show Cala’s eagerness for experimentation, leaning into arrangements focused on heavy grooves, lush sound palettes and catchy melodies. Cala are now busy writing their next project with an ever-present passion.
Summer Sessions is free to attend but capacity is limited so make sure you arrive early!
Entrance to Summer Sessions is from Bank Row (opposite Co-op)
Check out the entire programme here – please note that some of the workshops require booking.
