Trail West – From the Sea to the City
TW Records – Out Now
For Trail West’s latest release From the Sea to the City, the previous Glasgow-based four-piece of Ian Smith, Seonaidh MacIntyre, Andrew Findlater and Alain Campbell have been bolstered by the arrival of Jonathan Gillespie on keyboard and vocals and Allan J. Nairn on electric guitar. Given the group’s current base of operations and strong links to Glasgow’s thriving Gael music scene but their historical ties to the Hebridean Isles of Tiree and South Uist and the remote peninsular of Ardnamurchan, it is fitting that the overarching theme of the set relates to the decision and journey many Gaels have to make and take: whether to stay in their homes by the sea or leave to pursue educational and employment opportunities in the city.
Although a perennial historical Scots narrative, it is a timely theme in the context of a world where reactionary politics has made the idea of nation a dog-whistle call-to-arms, and now polices borders with walls and guns even while our identities become increasingly fluid matters of choice and the realities of our worlds demands our ability to move as never before. In that regard, there is none of the maudlin wistfulness or saccharine nostalgia that historically has tended to accompany the song of the migrant and emigrant for the old country. Trail West’s roots in ceilidh mean that what’s immediately apparent is a sense of energy, groove and connection – to their instruments, each other, their tradition, and their audience. Musicians can fall into the trap of playing for themselves. In many ways, it’s a tendency to be encouraged as it can be productive in terms of evolving singular artistic visions or exceptional technical reach (or both). I’m all for whizz-bang technical virtuosity, but a connection between a band and their audience relies on other qualities too, including shared culture or history and the band’s ability to take their audience on their journey with them when they take flight. Trail West can all play, they all know their stuff, but they also have the latter qualities in abundance. The gentle opening to ‘Bernie’s Second Debut’ soon gives way to a driving skirl of bagpipes and whistles, while the jig and reel of ‘Box and Whistle’ and ‘The Tayvallich Turkey’ keep up the relentless pace up. If your cry is ‘give me a band, who can make my toes tap every day of the week and twice on Sundays’ Trail West will be right in your wheelhouse.
The album isn’t just about the dancefloor and toe-tapping, either. Traditional music evolved as the counterpart to hard lives and hard times. The dance element was part of what got the audience through; a chance to kick off their shoes and let down their hair after the grind of daily life. The music was also by its nature reflective of the experiences of the audience too. The light and shade are reflected here. ‘McAlpine’s Fusiliers’, ‘Óran An T-Saighdeir’, ‘The Mermaid’, the aching ‘Mo Ghruaghach Dhonn’ and the lamenting broadside ballad ‘Belfast Mountains’ underscore the celebratory passion and energy of the up-tempo songs by tying in with the album’s overarching theme. The changes of pace bring home the sense of dislocation, displacement and regret that economic necessity, cultural catastrophe, lost love and the cruel sea has inflicted on Gaelic culture over the years.
Ross Wilson’s production is bright, sharp and focused. The band’s playing is flawless and vigorous, and the expanded line-up has added potential to the sound that bodes well for the future. Right here and now, though. From the Sea to the City is a cohesive set covers a range of moods and styles with nimble flexibility, taking you from the dance to sombre seriousness and the surge of deep and strong emotion with equal facility and success. As such, I can highly recommend it.
The band feature the latest Folk Radio UK Folk Show which you can listen to here.
Photo Credit Rachel Keenan