Seonaidh blazes a trail west to Seattle - now for Glasgow’s O2!

Seonaidh says: “For the past three years, we have sold out Barrowland with a 1900 capacity so this is definitely a step up”. The timing is related to the release of Trail West’s new album, “Thirsty Work”, which came out at the beginning of August. “This will be the first time we’ve played the music live”, he says. “It’s the official album launch party”.

It is the band’s fifth studio album and has been extremely well received. “They’ve all gone down well”, says Seonaidh, “but there seems to be something special about this one”.

Ths support act at O2 will be RuMac – also known as Ruaraidh Maclean from Ullapool who recorded his debut album this year at the Wee Studio in Lewis. With Skye Gaelic singer, Eilidh Cormack from the band Sian, and David Foley, the bodhran and flute player from another top band, Rura, as “special guests”, it’s safe to predict that the O2 will be jumping!

One guest who Seonaidh would like to have had on the bill is Allan Macdonald – his “favourite piper of all time” – who joins the band for one of the tracks on the album but is currently “artist in residence” at Beinn Mhàbu, a recently opened Gaelic campus in Cape Breton. “There seems to be a lot going on just now in Cape Breton”, says Seonaidh.

Trail West, with origins in Tiree and Seonaidh’s native South Uist, have steadily grown in popularity and are now fixtures on the west coast festival circuit and far beyond. Seonaidh, who is a director of Ceòlas, the Gaelic and traditional music centre in Daliburgh, is also heavily involved in teaching pipes and other instruments, mostly through the medium of Gaelic.

This gives him reassurance that the rise of bands like Trail West have brought the language and the music closer to young people. “I’ve definitely sensed a shift in attitudes”, says Seonaidh whose band schedule means that much of his teaching commitment is now through the medium of Zoom, which seems to work very well.

“I’ve taken on giving on-line tuition for Fèis Bharraigh which has invested in additional learning for the kids and that extra exposure to the music is paying off”, he says. “I’m giving additional tuition to 17 students, almost all of them through the medium of Gaelic and their Gaelic is phenomenal”.

Last week he got back from tutoring at Fèis Seattle, which was his first visit to North America. “I was teaching with other tutors from Scotland – Linda Macleod, Angela Maceachen, Ramsay MacMahon, Calum Maclean – and a couple from Cape Breton.

“There seems to be a wee Gaelic community out there around Seattle and a lot came down from Vancouver and from all over America”.

“Ten days of fun and games”, says Seonaidh but also a lot of hard work as the North American learners take their Gaelic and music seriously. Several of those attending had previously been to Ceòlas summer schools.

Last weekend, Trail West were headlining in Campbeltown at a “West Coast Rocks” concert which brought the Mull of Kintyre Festival to its conclusion. The big night at the O2 in Glasgow is next up, to be followed by the closing concert for the National Mod at the Corran Halls in Oban on Saturday 19th October. Tickets for this assured sell-out are already available through the Trail West web-site.

The band’s last gig of the year will be in Inverness Leisure Centre in November and Seonaidh will then be looking forward to his first New Year at home in Lochcarnan since it all started to take off for Trail West.

Tickets for the Glasgow O2 gig can be bought through www.ticketmaster.co.uk