Laura Silverstone on HebCelt debut and islands and Basque similarities
Having spent time living on the Isle of Skye, she's spent the last eight years living the van life and travelling around anywhere she can to perform live music.
She has new music in the pipeline too, having recorded at Lipaka Studios in Germany with sought-after producer Bob Vogston, and headline shows in Glasgow and Edinburgh are to take place soon.
Originally from the Basque Country, she's been loving how busy she is and cannot wait to get on stage at HebCelt.
She said: 'I feel like my feet have barely touched the floor since the album came out. It's been busy, it's been lovely, I feel really grateful.
'I'm over the moon to be there. I'm thrilled. Terrified, but thrilled. I want to breathe in as much of the music as I possibly can. It's a little bit scary, but in a really exciting way. It's like that mix of anticipation, excitement and nerves.'
HebCelt festival takes place next week (Image: Supplied)
One of the main draws for her about HebCelt is the amount of women who are on the bill alongside her.
Lulu is one of the headliners but another Scot is also high on Silverstone's list with Nina Nesbitt also performing.
She continued: 'It's going to be quite astonishing to hear so many really great, talented female singers as well. It's going to be amazing.
'I think women have a completely different viewpoint in so many things, so many aspects of life. When women make music, it can be so different and so much closer to me. It gives you a completely different view of the same topics from a very different perspective.
'So I'm really grateful to be able to see so many women.
'I hope I get to meet NATI. We're like the same age and we live in the same area and it'd be so cool. Lulu is just an absolute legend. There's also Eddi Reader and Nina Nesbitt. I'm really excited to see Nina Nesbitt. I love her music.'
Silverstone credits living in Scotland as being a big part of her growing career and believes the Hebrides is similar to where she grew up in the Basque Country.
She added: 'I've always, always said that about Scotland, how it's so beautifully culturally rich whilst at the same time being so appreciative of other cultures. I think a lot of places in the world should learn from Scotland about that.
'It's a community of its own as well. There's so much going on around Gaelic language and culture. As an outsider, to just appreciate it and relate it back to my own Basque-culture, there was a mutual appreciation and fascination for each other's culture.
Read More
'In the same way that I was interested and wanting to learn more about it, the response was always to want to know more about the Basque culture and the Basque language.
'I used to live on the Isle of Skye, which is where I first converted my van. So I did a little bit of exploring while I was there. I went to Harris and Lewis and absolutely loved it. I remember driving and the weather was beautiful and I remember thinking my main worry for today is where am I going to see the best sunset? It was amazing.
'It feels like you're somewhere on the edge of the world. I do remember thinking, oh my God, it's so far away, and then thinking, actually, this is probably one of the safest places in the world. Seeing all the stuff that's going on around the world, in Europe and everywhere, I would just be like yeah, no, I'm happy here.
'I got the sense of community in a way that you only see in areas where everybody knows each other and everybody's so friendly and so welcoming. I didn't get much of a chance to do much music at the time so with HebCelt, that's what I'm there for.'
HebCelt will take place on the Isle of Lewis from July 16 to July 19 and a new funding boost has meant that, along with Lewis Wind Power, it can expand its support to Gaelic culture and youth activities.
The Culture & Business Scotland Fund has made an investment equal to 50% of Lewis Wind Power's sponsorship of key festival outreach work.
It means more funding is available to sponsor engagement projects including the likes of Gaelic-led morning workshops which use storytelling, craft, Gaelic singsongs, a zine wall and more to broaden access to Gaelic arts and culture.
Welcoming the news, Chair of the HebCelt Festival Board Iain Macphail said: 'Lewis Wind Power's incredible and long-standing support for HebCelt already plays a vital role in showcasing local talent and creating cultural opportunities.
'Thanks now to the generous support of the Culture & Business Scotland Fund, we are able to expand that benefit into the heart of our community, unlocking new ways for young people, families, and Gaelic speakers to engage with culture creatively.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BreakingNews.ie
17 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Seán Rocks: Funeral of RTÉ broadcaster to take place in his hometown Monaghan
The funeral of RTÉ broadcaster and actor Seán Rocks will take place in his hometown of Monaghan on Monday. Mr Rocks, who was the host of arts and culture programme Arena on RTÉ Radio 1, died suddenly at St Vincent's University Hospital on Wednesday following a short illness. Advertisement The 64-year-old, who lived in Dundrum in Dublin, had been on air the previous Friday. In a notice on Mr Rocks' family offered their thanks to the staff at the intensive care unit in St Vincent's for the 'excellent and devoted care' they gave him. They also expressed their appreciation for the kindness extended to them by staff onsite at a very difficult time. Mr Rocks will lie in repose at Clerkins Funeral Home Milltown, Monaghan, on Saturday and Sunday from 3pm until 6pm. The funeral procession will arrive to St Macartan's Cathedral in Monaghan on Monday for 11am mass with burial in the adjoining cemetery. The funeral service will be live streamed. Advertisement Paying tribute to Mr Rocks earlier this week, RTÉ director-general Kevin Bakhurst said his death was an 'enormous shock'. Ireland Seán Rocks, presenter of RTÉ radio's culture show... Read More He said: 'Seán said once: 'Radio is never about the presenter. It's about the person who is opposite you.' 'Loyal listeners, especially to Sean's beloved and long-running Arena on RTE Radio 1, will recognise the man in that quote: Modest yet learned; subtle yet probing; curious yet polite. 'The listener at home was always his focus. Not only is radio the poorer for his passing, but so too has Ireland lost one of its most passionate advocates for the arts, and one of its most informed and versatile voices. 'I want to extend my most sincere sympathies to Sean's beloved Catherine, his children Christian and Morgan, his friends, and his colleagues at this terrible time.'
BBC News
11 hours ago
- BBC News
Children and parents praise Romanian classes in Jersey
Children and parents have praised a educational programme in Jersey that teaches Romanian language, culture and began last year and are free to attend for youngsters aged between three and 18 years programme is run at Plat Douet School on Saturday mornings and has been funded by the Romanian classes have been nominated for the BBC Radio Jersey Make a Difference Awards for the support they have provided the Romanian community in the island. Stefan, eight, has been attending the classes since they began and said he had learnt more about the country's said: "I don't think I've ever missed one of the classes... I think it's important that I learn Romanian."I can talk with my loved ones back in Romania because, when I started, I didn't know that much of the language. Now I can speak really well." Miruna, 13, is from Romania but grew up in Jersey, and said she felt the classes had helped her settle into the said: "I feel like I'm more at home... I feel it's good to communicate with friends and to keep traditions as well."I've been doing this since the beginning and I feel like I'm doing really well understanding Romanian more." Georgiana Lombada's son and daughter attend classes and she said she had been impressed by how they had helped said it was "important for them to keep speaking our language" and "coming here and learning how to read, write and grammar rules makes a huge difference".Ms Lombada added: "We are very proud and very happy for this programme and we owe a lot to everyone who has worked hard to make it happen."The courses are provided by the Romanian Linguistic Institute in Bucharest. Ana Maria Ivanov is one of the teachers on the course and said she had been moved by the support the team has said the classes "are really special because they bring our community together" and "it is a pleasure to teach here and we come in with our hearts open"."It's not only for the Romanian community though, because we are open to any child that would like to join us," Ms Ivanov said she was also surprised to hear the classes had been nominated for the BBC Radio Jersey Make a Difference Ivanov said: "It's absolutely amazing and it is the first we've been nominated for anything because we only started a year ago, so to hear we're making a difference for parents makes us really proud."
The Herald Scotland
a day ago
- The Herald Scotland
Scotland's first Gaelic metalcore band to debut at Belladrum
The Glasgow-based four-piece have build an online fanbase over the last year and intend to make an impact at Belladrum before making way for the likes of The Hoosiers and Example. The festival takes place just a few miles outside of Beauly, near Inverness, and vocalist Colin Stone said: '[[Gaelic]] music is often associated with accordions, acoustic guitars, and the fiddle. Gun Ghaol began as a way to combat that stereotype. "It's brilliant that Belladrum have recognised the following we've been building online and wanted to bring it to their audience. Read More 'We don't wear masks, there's nobody famous involved - it's just riffs and breakdowns in a language that deserves to be heard." Gun Ghaol will be the heaviest set across the three day festival that includes others such as Natasha Bedingfield, Supergrass and Texas but the group are aware of that and are keen to offer something different to audiences. Colin added: "We're something completely different for audiences. "Metalcore, our genre, has been performed in English for decades. There are other bands whose lyrics are in German, French, Russian. So I thought: why can't we do this in Gaelic? 'It's a language I've spoken all my life. It's my heritage. And if we can bring it to people in a way they've never heard before, that's fantastic.' Figures from the 2022 national census found that the number of Gaelic speakers in Scotland was on the rise, with strong increases in school-age children and young adults. Gun Ghaol themselves are fresh off the back of releasing 'Tog Dealbh', the second single from their upcoming 'Sgrios' EP with Dundee-based producer Kieran Smith.
