RM Hubbert launches album Thirteen Lost & Found with friends
Aidan Moffat, Alex Kapranos and more to join in at Stereo show
RM Hubbert’s debut album First & Last was more than just an instrumental record by a talented Glaswegian guitarist. Far from a commercial stepping-stone, the record was rather the result of Hubbert’s attempts to document a tumultuous three-year period in his life, which saw the loss of both parents and the break-up of his marriage, alongside being diagnosed with chronic depression.
Not many people can deal with circumstances like these in quick succession, let alone express themselves creatively, but it was through a compulsion to communicate and express himself in a way, beyond one-on-one conversation, that drove Hubbert to create a collection of pieces that are beautifully intricate yet heartbreakingly emotive.
Having rigorously learned technical flamenco exercises, simply to keep busy, Hubbert coupled elements of these with unorthodox flourishes of melody, open tunings and percussion to create a style that pulls as much from the Spanish traditional sound as it does from his own musical history, having served as an active member of several acts throughout the city these past two decades – perhaps most notably, math-rock crew, El Hombre Trajeadeo.
Having released it independently on a pay-what-you-like basis, First & Last was picked up by Chemikal Underground last year, a relationship which has since spawned another record, Thirteen Lost & Found. Expanding on the idea of using music as a form of communication, the new album sees Hubbert use it as a way to connect, or rather reconnect with the album’s many collaborators, including old friends and musical luminaries such as Aidan Moffat (Arab Strap), Emma Pollock (The Delgados), Alex Kapranos (Franz Ferdinand) and Alasdair Roberts. They will also join Hubby for a run through the entire album as part of what is sure to be blinder of a launch show at Glasgow’s Stereo.
Stereo, Glasgow, Thu 27 Jan, support by Tattie Toes. Thirteen Lost & Found is released on Tue 31 Jan on Chemikal Underground Records. Watch this space for an upcoming interview with RM Hubbert.