Island singer songwriter Willie Campbell has joined forces with Taylor Swift’s recording engineer for the release of his new ‘indie pop’ solo single, Leaving Lewis, out on Friday (11 September).

Harking back to his Astrid days, the Tumbling Souls frontman and solo artist turned to Bishop, previously nominated for a Grammy for his work on Swift’s multi-platinum ‘Red’ album, to capture the full energy of the new track.

The result is described as one of the brightest, high-tempo indie guitar bangers this year, packed with Willie’s trademark storytelling.

The song itself is about his life on the road – or the Minch – as a travelling musician, leaving his family on Lewis to play on the mainland and thinking about the state of the world around him, while also staying grateful.

Willie said: “I’m excited about this track and just felt that it deserved to be mixed by someone with skills far better than my own.

“I love Matt’s mixing and that ability he has to tease the energy and brightness out of a song, he really took it up a level.

“He’s one of the best I’ve ever worked with. His CV is unreal – Taylor Swift, The Killers, U2 and others speaks for itself – and he has really managed to capture that air and emotion in the song that I was hoping for beautifully.”

Also appearing on the track is James ‘Cliffy’ Clifford, his former Astrid bandmate and Cosmic Rough Riders bass player, in a familiar lock step with Campbell’s distinctive guitarmanship. It is said to provide a sound that straddles indie pop rock generations.

Describing his song, Willie say: “The first verse is just thinking about the enormity of 'it' all: about having your soul inside your body, a bag of bones held up by a ghost, and the thought that we are orbiting a gigantic nuclear reaction.

“Then there's news fatigue. I went through a phase of listening to the news on the radio almost relentlessly every morning and it was just starting to pull me down, just the horror of everything that's going on in the world just now. That low-level dread about the state of the world.

“So mostly it's about having to leave my wife and the kids and get the ferry to go away and play while all this is happening around us. I know I'm really lucky to be making a living as a musician, but I get down at the same time, having to go. It's just about having gratitude for the good things in my life.”

Willie is preparing for the release of his new album, as well as a series of live solo dates to be announced. He is also due to appear with The Tumbling Souls at McChuill’s in Glasgow on 13 November. 

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