On a dark and rainy night in late October, local residents gathered in the cosy Rio Community Centre in Newport-on-Tay, suitably bedecked with plump pumpkins and suspended spiders, to have their hearts warmed by an evening of eclectic music performed by Pictish Trail, L.T. Leif, and Weird Wave.
Hailing all the way from Canada, L.T. Leif set the bar high, kicking off the night with a selection of hauntingly beautiful and deeply contemplative songs. A number of these were taken from their latest LP, Come Back to Me, but Lightly, released in 2023 under Johnny Lynch’s Scottish indie record label, Lost Map Records. Written during a number of seismic shifts in their own life, including moving between Iceland, Finland, and Scotland (the singer confessed to feeling a little homesick), songs such as the deeply moving “Pass Back Through” reflected poignantly on the battles we fight for and within ourselves. Their music was a balm for the soul. The audience was noticeably moved by Lief’s candid descriptions of the inspiration behind their songs, each introduction being delivered with a genuine humility which belied the exceptional quality of their songwriting and voice. Lief, performing solo, stuck to a more acoustic sound for this performance despite experimenting electronically on record. However, this was perfectly executed and added a unique flavour to the smorgasbord of sound we were treated to throughout the night.
Next up came Pictish Trail (Johnny Lynch) himself. With infectious exuberance, he transported us all the way from the Hebridean Isle of Eigg (his homeland, with the memorable “Island Family” paying homage to bonfire night, his favourite night of the year), to Glastonbury (his lively “Heart Eyes”, and the tale behind its conception, proved a particular crowd pleaser). The delighted audience “ooohd” and “aaahhd” appropriately – and, occasionally, inappropriately – during various dramatic inter-song stories, delivered with all the conviction of a well-established stand-up. Songs were plucked from across Lynch’s discography, including his fifth and latest full-length album, Island Family, released in 2022. For me, Pictish Trail was the standout performance of the evening. He delivered a setlist that boasted the range and depth of Lynch’s talent, divided between a more gentle, acoustic first half and a fast-paced, high-energy, electronic latter half, a diversity of style and sound few could boast of within such a small window of stage time.
In case we hadn’t heard enough from these two fantastic performers already (disclaimer: we certainly had not!), both returned for the final act, a collaborative project between eight talented musicians. Alongside Lynch and Lief, Weird Waves consists of drummer Iain Stewart, multi-instrumentalist Susan Bear, guitarist and singer Kate Lazda (Kid Canaveral), bassist Bart Owl (eagleowl), violinist Robyn Dawson, and Savage Mansion frontman Craig Angus. Described by The Scotsman as a “supergroup”, what followed was an unexpected and somewhat psychedelic experience, with members merging their unique skills and sounds to incredibly powerful effect. With phenomenal energy and an endearingly visible sense of camaraderie, the octet treated us to the majority of their first LP, Weird Wave (yet another product of 2023, evidently a triumphant post-pandemic year for tonight’s performers). The group recorded the LP on the Isle of Eigg over the course of a week to mark the tenth birthday of Lost Map Records, a milestone which Lynch has described as befitting both a celebration and “an existential crisis”. Although hardcore drumming and metal-esque vocalisations are a far cry from the more traditional Scottish folk scene, it was impossible not to beam and sway (or jump, for those on the dancefloor) along to the likes of “Big Jetty” and “Astral Difficulties/ Weird Wave”, both released as singles in their own right.
From Leif’s soothing “Fish Walk” to Lynch’s daring stage dive, tonight’s performers had us hooked from start to finish. During a recent interview about the evolution of the Weird Wave LP, Lynch revealed that he’d kicked off the creative process by asking the group to work around the theme of “escape”’. In a darkening world, witnessing this group of musicians doing what they love most with such joyful abandon felt akin to being subsumed within a huge – and undoubtedly delightfully weird – wave of light.
Weird Wave continue their UK-wide 2023 tour into December; the remaining dates can be found here.