The Pictish Trail, aka Fence Records honcho Johnny Lynch, is set to release his second album Secret Soundz Vol. 2 this coming October. It was recorded on the Isle of Eigg alongside Stephen Black, aka Sweet Baboo, and will be trailed by a 7" EP in July.
In advance of these dates, and to accompany a tour in May, Lynch has made a taster EP available in that most unusual of formats: an item of clothing. Of Course You Exist – whose title track you can stream via the embed below – will be released in mini-EP form to accompany purchases of an ‘electric tee-bag’ (t-shirt), and a sweatshirt, with different combinations of tracks arriving with each. The track itself is a fuzzed-out, ultra lo-fi folk song, with Lynch’s voice straining to make itself heard from somewhere deep behind a wall of murky distortion.
The clothing itself is emblazoned with Pictish Trail artwork (see bottom for a rather fetching picture of Lynch and King Creosote as models). The t-shirt EP also contains a remix by FOUND, along with two more Pictish Trail tracks, ‘Pie Eyed’ and ‘Feeling Faint’. The sweatshirt EP comes with three acoustic tracks, ‘I’ve Been Set Upon’, ‘Not To Be’, and an acoustic take on ‘Of Course You Exist’. You can buy them here: t-shirt and sweatshirt.
Lynch has also assembled a new backing band for his tour dates, which includes members of Edinburgh crew eagleowl and Fence signed band The Süpergun. The band is apparently "LOUDER" than usual, and will be accompanying him for a series of shows in May. His tour dates run as follows.
MAY
03 – Glasgow – Cafe Saramago, CCA
04 – Brighton – The Haunt (Club Krankenhaus with British Sea Power)
05 – London – The Waiting Room
06 – London – Earl of Camden (Fence Records Showcase: Camden Crawl)
JUNE
02 – Galloway – Knockengorroch Festival