Trembling Bells will be bringing their mythical, psychedelic folk music to South by Southwest for the first time. The New York Times has already been won over and their unique sound is likely to win many new fans in Austin. Details of their St Davids’ Church showcase below:
The Dear Scotland Interview with Alex Neilson of Trembling Bells was published earlier today:
DS: Your heading out to Austin soon for SXSW, have you played there before and are there other places you’d like to visit?
Alex Neilson, Trembling Bells: I have played in Austin before but never at the SXSW festival. I am a little trepidatious about it as I have heard conflicting reports about the SXSW experience, though it is such a vast event that I am sure there is alot of good stuff to see/ hear. We were trying to organise a tour to California to coincide with the trip but it fell through — it would have been a thrill to visit the Henry Miller library in Big Sur and mince along Haight Ashbury like so many of our heroes from the west coast 60s psychedelic scene.
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DS: Do you feel more Scottish when you are abroad, or do you adapt well to new places? Anything you miss about Scotland?
Alex Neilson, Trembling Bells: I do feel quite Scottish when I am abroad. I usually play up the Scottish thing rather then let on that I was actually born in England, so people don’t start hating me quite so quickly. I also have a love of Scotch whiskey so try to find that while I am oot n aboot. Though I am a seasoned traveller and can usually adapt quite quickly, using my scant grasp of foreign languages that makes Del Boy look like Vladamir Nabakov.
Trembling Bells Interview with Dear Scotland, March 10, 2010
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Official Blurb
From the ashes of Scatter, a Glasgow-based collective which long anticipated the free-folk phenomenon, emerges anew song-based venture, Trembling Bells. Having served apprenticeships with some uniquely talented songwriters (Bonnie Prince Billy, Current 93, Alasdair Roberts, Baby Dee, Red Krayola, Six Organs of Admittance, Josephine Foster amongst them) Neilson seeks with Trembling Bells to reanimate the hidden, mythic landscapes of Yorkshire and Glasgow (in particular) via a love of canonical rock, Earlie Musik and traditional folk.
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Featuring the diverse musical talents of Medieval Music scholar and psychedelic siren, Lavinia Blackwall, Venusian bluesman, Ben Reynolds, Lucky Luke progenitor Simon Shaw, plus trombonist George Murray, and viola player Aby Vuillamy from Scatter and the Bill Wells Group
Band Website: www.myspace.com/tremblingbells
Confirmed SXSW gigs are listed below and will be updated if and when more shows are added. New York show details are here.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CL-v0MZoxo
Photo Credit: JC Phosphene
