Iain Copeland - A Northerly Land

(December 2013)

9 tracks: Halcyon Daze * Ailidh Dall Of Lairg * Homeward Bound * A Northerly Land * Family MacBough * The History Of The North * The Traveller * In The Cave of The Yellow Dog * Neil Ewart of Ardnamuchan.

Thrilling solo debut from top Scottish drummer/producer/composer Iain Copeland of Peatbog Faeries, Session A9 and Sketch.

Fusing ancient traditions, electronica, live instrumentation and contemporary poetry, A Northerly Land is a brilliantly multi-layered, sumptuously textured tapestry of traditional and contemporary elements, live instrumentation and digital wizardry, music and the spoken word. By turns it is euphorically funky, thrillingly adventurous and profoundly moving.

Created during a year-long artist's residency in the furthest North West corner of mainland Scotland, it draws deeply on the history and lore of the region known as Mackay Country, after its ancient ruling clan. This is blended with Iain Copeland's own richly cosmopolitan musical influences, from a career spanning over twenty years.

With the residency forming part of an innovative local history project, A Northerly Land responds to the themes of this wider initiative - earlier generations' experiences of their schooldays, and the causes and effects of inward migration. It also reflects Copeland's personal artistic odyssey during the year, which included forging fresh connections with the area's Traveller community, an ancient living culture 'discovered' in the 1950s by iconic folklorist Hamish Henderson.

Interweaving traditional, contemporary and original compositions, the album features a stellar array of special guests including saxophonist Nigel Hitchcock, guitarist Malcolm Macfarlane, trombonist Rick Taylor, Gaelic singer Fiona J Mackenzie and the poet George Gunn.