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As a teenager, frontman McAll survived an attack by a gang that left him with a catastrophic head injury and every memory of his childhood gone. The next decade was spent in a cabin on Scotland’s western coastline, where he eventually began composing again.
The result is a childhood imagined against a backdrop that, like the sea, is as serene as it is wild; ever-changing, yet resolute.
Championed by DJ Alex of KEXP, Gideon Coe of BBC Radio 6 Music and Vic Galloway and Roddie Hart of BBC Radio Scotland, Constant Follower releases the second single from his album ‘Neither Is, Nor Ever Was’ on the legendary NY imprint Shimmy Disc/Joyful Noise.
The first single premiered on Brooklyn Vegan and Glide Magazine and has garnered praise from the likes of:
DJ Alex, KEXP “Beautifully introspective vocal-led Folk. Loving the sound of Constant Follower.”
Clash Magazine “Hopelessly beautiful. A staggering piece of songwriting, with its simple poignancy carrying with it the wisdom only experience can offer.”
A Pessimist Is Never Disappointed "The Merry Dancers on TV" is gently affecting. A haunting ramble pitched at the place occupied by both Arab Strap and Bon Iver, this elegantly mellow song is something special indeed. It also helps that the video for the composition is just as memorable.”
CHILLFILTR “Like a heartbroken cry echoing through an empty cathedral, we are engulfed in equal parts sadness, wonder, and unspeakable beauty. Stephen McAll and his band Constant Follower are back with another poignant triumph of resonant chamber pop.”
Brooklyn Vegan “a lovely piece of delicate folk”
Folk Radio “Instantly compelling, memorable and moving”
Today, Constant Follower shares a brand new single entitled "Weave Of The World," the second release off their upcoming debut record ‘Neither Is, Nor Ever Was’ (due October 1 via Shimmy-Disc/Joyful Noise Recordings).
Of the track, frontman Stephen McAll recalled, “I wrote it during a period of anxiety or maybe mild paranoia. You can hear that in the words. But it’s taken on a new meaning for me, since what I must have thought might happen, didn’t. There’s still a lot of darkness in there, but the song reminds me that feelings are real but they aren’t facts. Even when you think things are going very wrong, there’s always a way to turn it around.”
The band’s debut album ‘Neither Is, Nor Ever Was’ was borne out of a respect for change, and the inevitable passing of time that frightens, comforts and humbles every one of us. It is a haunting testimonial to the temporary joys and fleeting moments that define the human experience.
Co-produced by Scottish singer-songwriter Stephen McAll and renowned producer and Shimmy-Disc founder Kramer (Low, Galaxie 500, Will Oldham), the recording for Neither Is, Nor Ever Was began in early 2020 at La Chunky studios in Glasgow with engineer Johnny Smillie
This was interrupted by the birth of McAll’s daughter (if you listen closely, her cries are just audible during some of Kessi’s backing vocals on ‘Little Marble’), and shortly afterwards by Covid 19 restrictions. McAll began recording the rest at his own CFFC studio in Stirling. The resulting recordings were then mixed and mastered by Kramer at his Noise Miami Studio, to breath-taking effect.
Each album track is accompanied by its own short film. McAll sought-out the most exciting new talents in Scottish film and animation and invited them to be part of the album project. Each video, the artist’s personal response to the song, with no direction or interference from the band, resulting in incredibly moving and enchanting short ‘films’ in their own right (with multiple film festival considerations including Edinburgh International Film Festival and Manchester Film Festival in process).
"One of the most beautiful records I have ever been privileged to be a part of, filled to the very brim with moment after moment of poetic clarity, and not a moment too late...an interior force to be reckoned with. I've never experienced anything quite like it. It weaves elements of the past around a future I was wholly unaware of before hearing these breath-taking songs, each one a kind of memorial to a memory that may or may not have merely been imagined or hoped into existence." - Kramer (Shimmy-Disc Founder)
