Guest Writer: Stephen Bogle from We See Lights

We See Lights playing Solas 2010

I've been asked to contribute to this blog. I play and sing in We See Lights. We played at last year's Solas Festival. If you've heard of us you’re either related to a band member or a friend of the band (hello friends and family). Speaking of friends of the band, Stanley Odd are friends of the band. They are playing at this year's festival. I'd very much recommended that you go and see them. They are doing something very different in Scottish music. They are "like totally hip hop and Scottish 'n' that."

As a friend of Stanley Odd, We See Lights know a secret: Stanley Odd use psuedo names. Yup. True. The names used are: Solareye (MC), Veronika Elektronika (Singer), T-Lo (piano), Scruff Lee (guitars), Ad Mac (bass) and Samson (on drums). This is a scoop for the Solas Festival blog. (I wanted to start with a bang). 

Stanley Odd

BANG! These are not their real names. 

Solareye is actually a rather affable chap called Dave, Veronika Electronika is actually a delightful girl called Paula, and Ad Mac is actually a charming and humorous gent called, Adam. This is big - I know. I wonder if they will still be friends with We See Lights after this breach of trust. I don't care. I'm like a NoW hack. This news is public interest. I swear.

Interestingly, bands can be friends. I don't mean on an intra-personal level. I mean on an inter-corporate-personal level. Band to band friendship. The sociology of bands. It's interesting. Yup. I'm not just a hack. This is deep. Not really. I am also a sociologist as well as a hack! However, what I mean is that bands can be friends through a mutual appreciation. It's a vital part of the creative process that you have contemporaries who influence, complement, or merely reflect, in their own way, similar ideals. Even if musically very different bands can be "friends". From an ideas point of view I completely share the ethos, lyrics and approach taken by Dave and the guys in Stanley Odd. They are independent, different, have a sense of fun, and are unashamedly Scottish. Sometimes this appreciation can lead to a collaboration.

Remember, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder (“Ebony and Ivory”), Mick Jagger and David Bowie (“Dancing in the Street”), Five and Queen (“We Will Rock You”). These are not good examples. Five and Queen. Horrible. Better examples are the Broken Social Scene, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young or more recently Thom Yorke, Four Tet, and Burial's collaboration. With this in mind, this year's Solas Festival is hoping to work as a catalyst in producing musical "friendships". Throughout the weekend Solas will showcase a couple of original collaborations performing original music. This is very exciting. We See Lights are taking part in this project. Currently we are working on a collaboration (we've posted a message on Gumtree looking for musical friends). Maybe if I get invited back to blog I can tell you more about other friends of We See Lights. It's not Stanley Odd by the way. After the revelations above, they won't be friends with me.





by Stephen Bogle
We See Lights launch their new EP Twee Love Pop next month.
Stephen can come back and blog about his pals any time he likes.