SATURDAY’S SCOTTISH SONG : #400: ADMIRAL FALLOW

Entry #400 in this series is one of those resulting from an oversight on my part back in 2015.

It was always intended to alphabetically pick my way through the hard drive, stopping as I went along anytime I reached any Scottish singer or band, and then choose one of their songs for inclusion in the series….albeit in many instances, the hard drive might have just the one song.   #3 on 14 March 2015 was Adam Stafford.  #4 on 21 March 2015 was Adventures In Stereo.

Admiral Fallow should have been #4 as back then I had a couple of tunes that had been downloaded from elsewhere.  Sorry!!

From all music:-

“Emerging from the thriving nu-folk scene of the late noughties, Admiral Fallow are a fiercely proud Scottish five-piece influenced by the likes of Tom Waits, Bruce Springsteen, and Rufus Wainwright.

Lead singer Louis Abbott, clarinetist Kevin Brolly, flutist Sarah Hayes, double bassist Joseph Rattray, and drummer Philip Hague formed the band, originally named Brother Louis Collective, while studying in Glasgow in 2007. Championed by Fyfe Dangerfield from the outset, they were invited to open for the Guillemots‘ Scottish tour soon after, before signing to indie label Lo-Five Records. After headlining the Sunday night T-Break stage at 2009’s T in the Park and supporting the Futureheads, Paolo Nutini, and King Creosote, they released their debut single, “These Barren Years,” and followed it up a year later with parent album Boots Met My Face, which was produced by former Delgados drummer Paul Savage.

The band signed with Nettwerk for its sophomore release, 2012’s indie folk Tree Bursts in Snow, named to evoke imagery of a weapon exploding near a snow-covered tree, inspired by the broader topic of loss through violence. Making a conscious effort to change things up for their third LP, they avoided acoustic guitars and devised songs primarily through keyboards, as well as writing as a band instead of building off of Abbott’s compositions. Admiral Fallow also arranged their own songs for a collaboration with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in 2013, which influenced more elaborate arrangements on the album. Remaining the same on the resulting Tiny Rewards were thoughtful lyrics, melodic muscle, and a sincerity conveyed by Abbott’s vocal performances. Written at a series of band retreats at a studio outside of Fort William, Scotland, and recorded in the summer of 2014, it was co-produced by Admiral Fallow and Cameron Blackwood, mixed by Savage, and released in 2015.”

Since the all music bio was published,  the band has recorded and released a fourth album, The Idea of You, which came out on Chemikal Underground in 2021.  Here’s what their new record label had to say about things:-

“Written and mostly recorded in 2019, The Idea Of You is a captivating collection of songs – generously melodic, confidently executed and festooned with intricacies. In true Admiral Fallow fashion, these tales of friendship and carefree adventure take the road less travelled, rarely finding their terminus where it might be most expected.

Warmth, empathy and contentment course through the nine songs, a response to its makers having navigated personal and professional challenges to emerge with their identity – both as a group and as individuals – intact. The Idea Of You traverses Philly soul, sophisticated pop and guitar-driven rock, delivering humbly anthemic choruses by the barrowload”

I suppose the good thing about missing them out back in 2015 means I can go to the most recent album for a tune:-

mp3: Admiral Fallow – Dragonfly

The band have a real following in their home city, capable of selling out decent-sized venues whenever they perform.  They are providing support to The Waterboys this coming June at a gig being played in a park on the south side of the city, not all that far from Villain Towers.

JC