Having lived in Glasgow for some four years between 2000 and 2004, the fact that Alison Eales’ ‘Fifty-Five North’ which is ‘rooted firmly in Glasgow and expresses how a place can be both transformative and overwhelming, telling of a struggle with changing seasons’ resonates. As the blurb explains, ‘The song features samples from the Glasgow Subway, with a rhythm track made from the sounds of the train doors closing, and a melody made from the ping of the turnstiles.’
That subway, famously referred to as the ‘clockwork orange’ is quite unlike the London underground, circulating the city in a round route that runs either clockwise or anti-clockwise.
Taken from her debut album ‘Mox Nox’, due in March, and described as ‘an album about the passing of time - most specifically, the transition from day to night’, ‘Fifty-Five North’ is lilting, easy on the ear, accessible, melodic, and even feels light and whimsical – but it’s tinged with a reflective melancholy. While any evocation of a place tends to be entirely personal, this seems a perfect encapsulation of life in Glasgow, a city that’s as northerly as Moscow and essentially shares a latitude with Siberia, which gives an indication of just how cold and dark and bleak the winters get.
‘Fifty-Five North’ is delicately crafted and far more complex and nuanced than it may initially appear. Breezy but chilly, it’s a pleasant and charming debut.
