2016 Blog

Album of the Month: RM Hubbert ‘Telling the Tree’

Another great release from the mighty record label Chemical Underground!

RM Hubbert is a guitarist and sometime singer from Scotland. He writes music about love, death, friendship, mental illness and occasionally a dog called D Bone. It’s not as depressing as the previous sentence suggests.

One of Glasgow’s more prolific artists, RM Hubbert has released music under a variety of guises since 1993. It was El Hombre Trajeado‘s triptych of albums released between 1997 and 2005 though, that really put Hubbert on the musical map, earning swathes of critical acclaim, three Peel Sessions and support slots with the likes of Sebadoh, Tortoise, Nick Cave, Deerhoof, Mùm, Mike Wattand The Delgados. Following El Hombre Trajeado’s demise, guitarist Hubbert took a break from playing live and began studying a host of different musical forms before returning to the scene in 2008 and self releasing his debut solo album First & Last, in March 2010.

Now he has returned with a new album, “Telling the Trees”, and it’s every bit as bold, unpredictable and affecting as we could have dared to expect. A reprisal of the collaborative format that so enriched 2012’s SAY Award winning ‘Thirteen Lost & Found’, this new project finds Hubby co-writing at arm’s-length from a dazzling array of musicians, songwriters and lyricists in stark contrast to the previous album’s up close and personal approach. Enlisting an amazingly diverse ensemble of talent, Telling the Trees features: Anneliese Mackintosh, Anneke Kampman,Rachel Grimes, Kathryn Williams, Marnie, Kathryn Joseph, Martha Ffion, Sarah J. Stanley, Aby Vulliamy, Karine Polwart, Eleanor Friedberger. The result is a mesmerising collection of styles, songs and instrumentals, linked by their infusion of Hubby’s trademark guitar playing and the sparkling production techniques of Paul Savage at Chem19.

Available to buy on CD and Deluxe Vinyl format with download card from Chemikal Underground.

 “It is decidedly pop in parts, both accessible and innovative, reaffirming Hubbert’s standing as one of Scotland’s finest and most treasured artists.” The Quietus

“Eleven different audio artists form ideas, take chances and augment the backbone of a record which at its core, is Hubbert all over.”  The Line of Best Fit