[Cover photo credit to Neil King]

Scottish musician Malcolm MacWatt has released new album Dark Harvest, the follow up to his album Settler. As a songwriter, MacWatt mixes Americana with British folklore, “uncovering the past to explore contemporary issues.” As a multi-instrumentalist, MacWatt’s work on Dark Harvest displays Appalachian and Celtic influences.

MacWatt plays all the instruments on the album aside from piano, with much of the ornamentation being improvised.

MacWatt explains:

I don’t read or write music. I have very basic equipment with no recording software so when I’m playing a fiddle part I need to be aware of what the banjo might do. For me, it’s a very immediate and exciting way to make music.

In many of the songs, MacWatt shares “personal politics and beliefs with sensitivity and compassion and without apology.” As the album title suggests, this is a collection of songs dealing with the “shady side of history with underlying themes of karma and repercussion.” Though there are aspects of oppression in the songs, there is also a celebration of heroism and love.

Growing up in the Scottish Highlands, MacWatt has a deep respect for tradition and heritage but considers himself a Contemporary Folk artist.

He says:

Folk music isn’t stuck in the past. It’s constantly being written and rewritten, and while I throw a little light onto certain historical events, I’m also trying to create new stories and songs that reflect life today.

MacWall also had specific collaborators in mind for the album while writing it:

I was so invested in these songs that I considered every aspect to the point where I was writing and arranging songs for artists I hadn’t even approached yet. Had Angeline Morrison not agreed to sing on “Empire In Me” I probably wouldn’t have recorded it. As I was putting the title track “Dark Harvest” together I could hear Nathan Bell’s voice and guitar. For “Out On The Western Plain” I wanted someone who could play the blues with all of Rory Gallagher’s fire and sensitivity and was blessed to work with Pat McManus. I’m so grateful to every single artist who gave of themselves for this project.