Earlier this year we brought you news of a new and fascinating album titled Orkney: Symphony Of The Magnetic North from the band The Magnetic North featuring Orcadian singer-songwriter Erland Cooper and band mate Simon Tong (Erland & The Carnival) and singer/orchestral arranger Hannah Peel (of last year’s solo The Broken Wave album), you can read the article (here). The album was released on Full Time Hobby in May this year.
The trio will be playing two shows this November, one up in Leeds on the 18th and another in the Southbank Centre in London on the 22nd. At the latter they will also be screening the film shot whilst recording their debut album. The film, titled Hunting For Remoteness, is part concert performance and part documentary – it captures the trio’s visit to Orkney as they experience the breathtaking sights & sounds that inspired & shaped the album. We meet many of the colourful characters that inhabit these magical faraway islands and hear their stories. Many of the Orcadians interviewed in the film are also members of the Island of Hoy Stromnabank pub choir who join the band for their sold out performance at Saint Magnus cathedral in Kirkwall.
The title ‘Hunting For Remoteness’ is a quote from an islander describing the draw of Orkney for those born there, those who have moved there and for the many thousands of tourists who visit every year. This film is more than a documentary it’s a journey into how music is inspired then created, it’s a journey into people’s lives and Orkney’s history. The album and film are dedicated to Betty Corrigall, an Orcadian girl who in the 1770’s killed herself having been cast out by her village after becoming pregnant by a visiting sailor. Betty visited band member Erland Cooper in a dream and it was this ghostly dream that inspired the album and film.
Trailer
Southbank Centre Performance and Screening
The Magnetic North have been drawn to the Southbank Centre in London to bring this audio visual Orkney experience to the capital as the film will be screened before their live show at the Purcell Room on Thursday, November 22nd.
Tickets for the Southbank Performance and film can be found here.
Tour Dates
The Magnetic North on tour
Sep 28 – La Maroquinerie, Paris, France
Sep 29 – Le Botanique, Bruxelles – Brussel, Belgium
Oct 01 – Grüner Salon, Berlin, Germany
Nov 18 – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, United Kingdom
Nov 22 – Purcell Room, Southbank Centre, London, United Kingdom
![Orkney: Symphony of the Magnetic North [CD]](http://99a98758a6a0695c2f8d-0d1531d44690fc9d8e009fc4d5be460c.r80.cf1.rackcdn.com/the-magnetic-north.jpg "Orkney: Symphony of the Magnetic North [CD]")
