...The Magnetic North!

A while back, I posed my usual Introducing... questions to Simon Tong from The Magnetic North.  Given I asked him to "plug away" and he obliged by mentioning their gig in Kirkwall this Thursday, it's probably about time I got it posted.  They also released their concept album Orkney: Symphony of the Magnetic North via Full Time Hobby back at the beginning of May.  The whole thing is a stunning piece of music.  Hardly surprising considering the special place the subject matter has in Erland Cooper's (of Erland and the Carnival fame) Orcadian heart.  Here's what Simon had to say, but first, a free taster from the album.

Kowalskiy: Who are The Magnetic North?

Simon: The Magnetic North are NOT a Canadian Hip Hop act. The Magnetic North are Erland Cooper, Hannah Peel and Simon Tong. We have written and recorded a musical travelogue of the Orkney Islands and hope that people will be inspired to go on a pilgrimage and visit all the island places we mention in our track titles.

Kowalskiy: How would you describe 'your sound'?

Simon:  Our sound is NOT folktronica. Our sound is inspired by the landscape and Folklore of Orkney Islands. It's dreamlike, watery, dark, evocative, ancient and modern.

Kowalskiy: PLUG AWAY!!!

Simon: We are playing a show in St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall on June 28th with a local choir and a small orchestra made up of local Orcadian musicians. In the autumn we are going to bring the choir (or as many as we can persuade to join us) to the mainland and tour the UK for a couple of weeks. We will also be projecting images of the Islands created by New York based visual artist Peter Norrman and will have a string and brass section on stage not to mention our wonderful drummer- James Field.

Kowalskiy: What can we expect from The Magnetic North in the future?

Simon: We don't know what the future holds for The Magnetic North. If anyone knows please do tell us. Secretly we hope there is a wonderful film out there just about to be made that needs the perfect soundtrack!

If you're up in Kirkwall, you'd be mad not to head along to St. Magnus Cathedral on Thursday.  Couldn't imagine a more perfect setting and accompaniment for their music.  If not, then you can still get your copy of the album from Full Time Hobby, Amazon MP3 and iTunes.