Gates Of Light is a new project centred around Scottish songwriter Louise Quinn, but spiralling out from there across oceans to a network of collaborators. The songs began with Quinn and her husband Bal Cooke writing, recording and producing them in their Glasgow bedroom while their children slept. Early feelers caught the attention of Scott Fraser in London and Kid Loco in Paris, both of whom contributed additional instrumentation and mixing. Shimmy-Disc founder and living legend Kramer was called in to master the album – and it resonated with him so much that he decided to release it on his label. Meanwhile, New York-based artist and film director Tim Saccenti also found himself responding to the songs, and has worked on the imagery and videos for Gates Of Light.
This inter-continental nature of the collective’s collaboration perfectly suits the themes of debut album Gates Of Light. While it is rooted in Quinn and Cooke’s personal experiences of the pressures and difficulties of lockdown, they are feelings that people the world over can relate to. Gates Of Light don’t dwell in the darkness of the last year, but look to find brightness, hope and liveliness in any corner, and the resulting songs land somewhere between Nico, Serge Gainsbourg and a lo-fi Saint Etienne.
Quinn says:
“Making this album was a light in the dark for everyone involved; lockdown has been a pretty intense experience for everyone; especially for Bal and myself bringing up one year old twins, and at the start when it really did feel like the end of the world. Music has been a gateway for us to travel where we can’t physically travel and connect when we can’t physically be together. It feels like we mined a bit of magic from the darkness of the pandemic. I really hope people get the same feelings listening to it as we did making it and it brings light and connection into their lives too.”
They should feel hopeful, the creation of Gates Of Light was aided by funds from Creative Scotland’s Open Fund to sustain creativity during lockdown – and they’re paying that positivity forward with this shimmering record.
Gates of Light’s self-titled debut album is officially released tomorrow, but we have the stream for you exclusively here below.
Gates Of Light’s self-titled album is out tomorrow via Shimmy-Disc (pre-order). You can find them on Facebook, Twitter and Bandcamp.
