as Scottish as Malt Whisky and just as enjoyable.
as Scottish as Malt Whisky and just as enjoyable.
www.myspace.com/thescottishenlightenment
If you’re going to Scotland its best not to plan for good weather. If you want to spend some time in the sun then there’s plenty of airlines willing to take your money and drop you off somewhere warm and unmemorable but so long as you don’t mind the wind and the rain and the fog and the mist and the hail and the… well, you get the idea, you’ll find it hard to uncover a more beautiful country in the world. Of course, I’m not going to try and argue that Inverness town centre is a place of outstanding beauty, but that pond round the back of it isn’t half bad. When it’s foggy and pishing it doon in Aviemore you’ll wonder why on Earth people would want to buy hiking boots when you can’t see four feet in front of you but then, if the cloud breaks and a bit of daylight comes in, you’ll suddenly realize that you’re in the midst of some of the most stunning countryside this side of anywhere. You see, that’s the wonderful thing about Scotland, it never ceases to surprise you and so we come to the Scottish Enlightenment and they’re pretty much Scotland in a nutshell.
Singer David Moyes (settle down football fans, it’s not him) sings in such a wonderful manner. He sounds like he can’t be bothered to open his mouth at all (Ok, so it could be the Everton manager after all!). You get the impression that singing’s a chore for him, as if he’s recording the 7000th take and really couldn’t give a monkeys any longer. Fans of Malcolm Middleton, Arab Strap and Lambchop will find comfort in these vocals I’m sure and hiding behind that voice is some impeccable music. The Scottish Enlightenment aren’t going to set a bomb off in your living room and have you bouncing around like a fifteen year old full of cider, instead they’re going to wake you up from a rough night and tease you back to life slowly with a fried egg sandwich and a cup of tea. Or, if you find yourself stood outside a hiking shop in Aviemore on a freezing cold afternoon, wondering why the hell you’ve come all this way just to stand in a cloud and get pissed on all week, then they may just break that cloud, dissipate the fog and introduce you to something extraordinarily beautiful.
The Scottish Enlightenment are canny folk, that’s for sure and so is their music. The Pascal EP may not be long, but it’s certainly memorable. It may not be about love and happiness but it’s certainly gorgeous and in the end, it’s as Scottish as malt whisky and just as enjoyable. Pour yourself a dram why don’t you?