Traceyanne Campbell: Guest blog

Hi, I’m Tracyanne (Camera Obscura) and I want to tell you that I have a new record coming out. Myself and Danny Coughlin from Crybaby have become Tracyanne & Danny.

After hearing a rumour we were all Indie purists up here in Glasgow, Danny from Bristol sent me a handwritten letter along with a C90 tape of a song and asked if I’d be up for a collaboration.

I immediately liked his voice and after a few phone and emails we decided it had legs enough to at least meet up in person.

I collected him from the airport and, not knowing what he looked like l guessed correctly he might be the fella wearing a lemon cardigan and desert boots. I took him to Jaconelli’s on Maryhill Road for breakfast and then onto The Belle pub for a pint and by home time we decided to make a record. So, we did.

Fast forward five years ( we can maybe talk about the in-between stuff later) and the record is complete and about to be released on May 25th on Merge Records.

How and where did we make this record?

We went up to the highlands of Scotland to Clashnarrow Studios in Helmsdale, home and workplace of legend Edwyn Collins to record our debut.

How did this come about? Well, my manager Francis Macdonald had been up with his band Teenage Fanclub to use the studio and had the brainwave that perhaps Danny and I should record up there with Edwyn. We went up and met Edwyn and his wife Grace, fell immediately head over heels with them and their world and booked ourselves in. Who wouldn’t have?

I could gush all day about the wonderfulness of Edwyn and Grace but lets just say Danny and I found a genuinely inspiring and safe place for our songs and not only that, we also made two new pals. Actually 5 new pals including Carwyn Ellis (bass/piano), Stacey (drums and Sean Read (engineer,percussion,sax)

Who are our influences? Well, there has been some talk of The Style Council, Sandy Posey and Bobby Bear, The Roches, Vernon Wray

We’re almost ready now to head out and play some live gigs. We will be joined by Sean Read (sax/keys) who engineered and co produced the record, Suse Bear (Tuff Luv, The Pastels) and Noel O’Donnell( Attic Lights) on drums. We’ll be playing Bristol, London and Glasgow

We will then head of to The USA

Please do come and see us, I’ve missed you.

Traceyanne and Danny play St. Luke’s in Glasgow on May 31st: Tix

The album is released on May 25th. Order here

Also available from all good record shops including Glasgow’s Monorail.