Cult band are not so Obscura now

Nov 12 2009 by Marjorie Kerr, West Lothian Courier

THEIR songs have appeared in Hollywood films and TV shows, they’ve performed for thousands of fans across the world, and legendary DJ John Peel was among their biggest supporters.

Yet Camera Obscura – fronted by West Lothian-born lead singer Tracyanne Campbell – still struggle to be recognised within their own country.

The Glasgow-based band released their new single – ‘The Sweetest Thing’ – on November 2 and it is likely to be their biggest record yet.

But Tracyanne, who is originally from Livingston, isn’t worried about the band becoming a household name.

“We’ve worked hard and our profile is becoming bigger in the UK and in other places. It’s nice to get recognition for the work we’ve put in,” she said.

“But I think we are – and I don’t think this is a bad thing – a cult band. Some of my favourite bands are cult bands.

“I do have a feeling that we are, and we probably will remain, a cult band. I don’t see us all of a sudden becoming big stars. I just don’t think we are going to be the sort of band that people en masse are turned on to.”

Camera Obscura have been together since 1996 and have built up a strong fan base, largely through word of mouth and Radio One DJ Peel, who was an early champion of the band

They released their first album in 2001, ‘Biggest Bluest Hi Fi’, followed by ‘Underachievers Please Try Harder’ in 2003 and ‘Let’s Get Out Of This Country’ in 2006.

The band then went full-time and embarked on a relentless touring schedule which has taken them all over the world, winning fans in all four corners of the globe, receiving more recognition elsewhere than in their homeland.

This year, the band toured North America again and launched their fourth album, the highly-acclaimed ‘My Maudlin Career’.

A landmark TV appearance came in June when they appeared on Craig Ferguson’s ‘Late Late Show’ on CBS in America. With a TV audience of two million, it gave the band massive exposure to the US public.

That appearance has cemented the belief among many fans that Camera Obscura may move from being a cult band to one which receives more widespread recognition. The band are now in the middle of their British tour, which saw them play Glasgow Barrowlands last week.

“It’s been quite interesting doing the tour in the UK because a lot of our fans have grown up with us and a lot of the time I felt they were quite young,” added Tracyanne.

“There are a lot of people certainly in their 50s and 60s coming to see us now and I think that’s good because, when I look at an audience like that, I think these are people that probably buy records.

“I think we are in a lucky position because we’ve been together for so long that we have built up a steady fan base and I don’t think we’ll ever lose them.”

Camera Obscura’s profile has also been lifted by the use of their songs in films such as ‘PS I Love You’, starring Gerard Butler and Hilary Swank, and TV shows such as Gray’s Anatomy and The OC. The latest trailers for Channel Four’s ‘Ugly Betty’, also use a Camera Obscura track.

Said Tracyanne: “I guess my hope then would be that we get bigger and have the freedom to express ourselves and take it to the next level.”

lVisit www.westlothiancourier.co.uk to see a video interview with the band about the launch of their new single, ‘The Sweetest Thing’.