Abundant with rich storytelling and a philosophical approach to his subject matter, Calum’s highly ambitious debut album blends artful and unconventional rock with more familiar pop and folk sensibility to create a tour de force more than worth its song-written salt.
Originally hailing from the town of Haddington, East Lothian (Scotland), and currently based in Edinburgh, Calum generally pays the bills as a bassist extraordinaire for a plethora of successful bands, both formerly and presently; Northern Ireland’s 2018 NI Prize Winner ‘Joshua Burnside’ and burgeoning Glasgow acts ‘Ali and the Parade’ and ‘Anna Leyden’, to name a few. He is also co-songwriter and performer for Edinburgh’s ‘Victorian Trout Conspiracy’ and newly formed trio ‘racecar’. However he has managed to take time out of his busy schedule and use his considerable experience as a multi-faceted musician to debut his first solo effort, the inimitable ‘Panopticon’.
Absolution, free will, euphaniasia, small town tragedy, conflict and witch-hunt phenomena are but a handful of the concepts explored throughout the 10 track album. It is a meditation on those roads less travelled; nuance and ambiguity is the preferred approach by Mason, dissecting his topics carefully and artfully with no rush to any definitive conclusion. His lyrics question the legitimacy of his own tongue, whilst fixating scrutiny upon the convictions promulgated by others.
The music is wide-ranging and veritable in its stylistic approach, adapting each genre-bend as a contextual backdrop to the lyrics. High octane alternative rock is bookended by placid lulls of haunting folk, and everything in between. Greater than the sum of its parts, Panopticon is created to be listened to as a full body of work, and is well worth the deep dive.
Connect with Calum: https://linktr.ee/calummasonband
