The up-and-coming Scottish bands you’re going to hear much more from in 2027
Scotland has a proven track-record of producing bands capable of travelling far beyond the venues where they started.
CHVRCHES, The Snuts, Frightened Rabbit, Vistas, Dead Pony, The Twilight Sad, Walt Disco. The route from small rooms in Glasgow and Edinburgh to bigger stages and music festivals around the world remains well travelled.
Your next favourite Scottish band is already on the move.
Across the country, and particularly in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, bands are making a name for themselves. Here are some of the Scottish bands worth getting to know now - because 2027 could be considerably bigger for them.
Brontës
Brontës are Eva on lead vocals and guitar, Amelia on drums, Erin on guitar and Katie on bass. With a new attitude and sound they have reinvented themselves as a four-piece pop-rock band influenced by generations of music, from Sabrina Carpenter to Blondie and The Ronettes.
Brontës have been steadily building a following and released their self-titled debut album was released in April this year, giving the band something substantial to build from, while a growing live schedule will introduce them to audiences beyond the people who have already discovered them at grassroots venues.
Soapbox
The Glasgow punk band is known for intense social commentary and energetic live performances. Originally formed in 2022, they have worked their way through sold out shows at venues like King Tut’s, the Hug & Pint, The Garage and the Glasgow Art School. Made up of Tom Rowan (vocals), Aiden Bowskill (bass), Jenna Nimmo (drums), and Angus Husbands (guitar), they rage passionately about a variety of political issues big and small. Last year they headlined Tenement Trail, the festival of music discovery, with a bombastic set at Saint Luke’s. There’s more to come.
Mercy Girl
The Glasgow-based darkwave electronic band formed in 2024, comprising Daisy Miles, Davey Purdie, Craig Harkness and Kylie MacNaughton. Since launching in November 2024, they have built an international online following, accumulated millions of streams and sold out their debut Glasgow headline show. They won Best Newcomer at the 2025 Scottish Alternative Music Awards, while No Sound was named a Track of the Week by BBC Radio 6 Music.
Brògeal
One of the most interesting developments in Scottish music has been the re-emergence of folk music among younger audiences who might previously have headed straight towards indie rock. Falkirk’s Brògeal sit right in the middle of it.
The band combine traditional Scottish and Irish influences with the energy of an indie group, producing music that can feel as comfortable in a packed pub as it does on a festival stage. Their debut album Tuesday Paper Club arrived in 2025 and the band’s profile continued to rise during 2026, including an appearance on the TRNSMT bill at Glasgow Green. They are confident, distinctive and are gathering followers wherever they go. Brògeal are destined for bigger stages.
Red Vanilla
Dundee deserves more attention as a source of new Scottish music and Red Vanilla are one of the strongest arguments for looking beyond the traditional Glasgow-Edinburgh axis. The alternative rock act entered a new phase in 2026 as founders Anna Forsyth and George Weller shifted the project into a two-piece. Rather than slowing them down, the change coincided with the release of their second EP, Where I Should Be, through Assai Records.
Thundermoon
Edinburgh’s grassroots scene is producing some particularly adventurous electronic music and Thundermoon are among the acts beginning to emerge from it. The band were one of 12 acts selected from more than 300 applications to perform at Hidden Door in 2026. Festival organisers described their music as emotive, synth-led anthems built around ideas of time, transformation and energy.
There is a lineage here stretching from Scotland’s post-punk experimentation to the electronic pop that later gave the country acts such as CHRVCHES. Thundermoon occupy an interesting space between pop melody, electronics and performance.
Dinosaur 94
Dinosaur 94 are an Edinburgh indie-punk band formed in 2017 by students at the University of Edinburgh. Known for catchy riffs, punk energy and playful songwriting, they released debut album You’ve Got The Wrong Guys in 2023 and have become regulars on the capital’s grassroots circuit. By 2027, they might be considerably harder to miss.
heavyskint
heavyskint are a Glasgow alternative rock five-piece, fronted by Jacob Hunter. They began as a bedroom project before developing into a full band and rapidly establishing themselves on Glasgow’s live circuit since 2024. Their early shows included King Tut’s, QMU and The Hug and Pint, with reports that their initial run of headline appearances sold out.
Musically, they’re in the territory occupied by Fontaines D.C. and Wunderhorse, but with older influences including Pink Floyd and late-1990s alternative rock. The band’s own description: “moody atmosphere, big choruses, noisy guitars, and high intensity.”
Scotland has a proven track-record of producing bands capable of travelling far beyond the venues where they started.
CHVRCHES, The Snuts, Frightened Rabbit, Vistas, Dead Pony, The Twilight Sad, Walt Disco. The route from small rooms in Glasgow and Edinburgh to bigger stages and music festivals around the world remains well travelled.
Your next favourite Scottish band is already on the move.
Across the country, and particularly in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, bands are making a name for themselves. Here are some of the Scottish bands worth getting to know now - because 2027 could be considerably bigger for them.
Brontës
Brontës are Eva on lead vocals and guitar, Amelia on drums, Erin on guitar and Katie on bass. With a new attitude and sound they have reinvented themselves as a four-piece pop-rock band influenced by generations of music, from Sabrina Carpenter to Blondie and The Ronettes.
Brontës have been steadily building a following and released their self-titled debut album was released in April this year, giving the band something substantial to build from, while a growing live schedule will introduce them to audiences beyond the people who have already discovered them at grassroots venues.
Soapbox
The Glasgow punk band is known for intense social commentary and energetic live performances. Originally formed in 2022, they have worked their way through sold out shows at venues like King Tut’s, the Hug & Pint, The Garage and the Glasgow Art School. Made up of Tom Rowan (vocals), Aiden Bowskill (bass), Jenna Nimmo (drums), and Angus Husbands (guitar), they rage passionately about a variety of political issues big and small. Last year they headlined Tenement Trail, the festival of music discovery, with a bombastic set at Saint Luke’s. There’s more to come.
Mercy Girl
The Glasgow-based darkwave electronic band formed in 2024, comprising Daisy Miles, Davey Purdie, Craig Harkness and Kylie MacNaughton. Since launching in November 2024, they have built an international online following, accumulated millions of streams and sold out their debut Glasgow headline show. They won Best Newcomer at the 2025 Scottish Alternative Music Awards, while No Sound was named a Track of the Week by BBC Radio 6 Music.
Brògeal
One of the most interesting developments in Scottish music has been the re-emergence of folk music among younger audiences who might previously have headed straight towards indie rock. Falkirk’s Brògeal sit right in the middle of it.
The band combine traditional Scottish and Irish influences with the energy of an indie group, producing music that can feel as comfortable in a packed pub as it does on a festival stage. Their debut album Tuesday Paper Club arrived in 2025 and the band’s profile continued to rise during 2026, including an appearance on the TRNSMT bill at Glasgow Green. They are confident, distinctive and are gathering followers wherever they go. Brògeal are destined for bigger stages.
Red Vanilla
Dundee deserves more attention as a source of new Scottish music and Red Vanilla are one of the strongest arguments for looking beyond the traditional Glasgow-Edinburgh axis. The alternative rock act entered a new phase in 2026 as founders Anna Forsyth and George Weller shifted the project into a two-piece. Rather than slowing them down, the change coincided with the release of their second EP, Where I Should Be, through Assai Records.
Thundermoon
Edinburgh’s grassroots scene is producing some particularly adventurous electronic music and Thundermoon are among the acts beginning to emerge from it. The band were one of 12 acts selected from more than 300 applications to perform at Hidden Door in 2026. Festival organisers described their music as emotive, synth-led anthems built around ideas of time, transformation and energy.
There is a lineage here stretching from Scotland’s post-punk experimentation to the electronic pop that later gave the country acts such as CHRVCHES. Thundermoon occupy an interesting space between pop melody, electronics and performance.
Dinosaur 94
Dinosaur 94 are an Edinburgh indie-punk band formed in 2017 by students at the University of Edinburgh. Known for catchy riffs, punk energy and playful songwriting, they released debut album You’ve Got The Wrong Guys in 2023 and have become regulars on the capital’s grassroots circuit. By 2027, they might be considerably harder to miss.
heavyskint
heavyskint are a Glasgow alternative rock five-piece, fronted by Jacob Hunter. They began as a bedroom project before developing into a full band and rapidly establishing themselves on Glasgow’s live circuit since 2024. Their early shows included King Tut’s, QMU and The Hug and Pint, with reports that their initial run of headline appearances sold out.
Musically, they’re in the territory occupied by Fontaines D.C. and Wunderhorse, but with older influences including Pink Floyd and late-1990s alternative rock. The band’s own description: “moody atmosphere, big choruses, noisy guitars, and high intensity.”