New Music: Fountain Road – The Trees Are Talking

Andy Monaghan found fame – and made a lasting cultural impact – as a member of Scottish indie rock band Frightened Rabbit.

His Fountain Road project has faint whispers of that iconic outfit but its musical and lyrical essence makes it a very different proposition indeed. On The Trees Are Talking, which is part of the lead-up to the debut album Gravel Shuffle in 2027, he’s accompanied by Grant Hutchison on drums and Jill O’Sullivan – aka Jill DeLorean – on backing vocals. The soft and quiet timbre of Monaghan’s serves to unveil the lyrics’ sensitively drawn mix of melancholy and hope to perfection, as O’Sullivan adds a spectral shimmer.

So, on this showing, Fountain Road is, on the surface at least, nothing like his previous band, as Monaghan leverages art rock, No Wave, and shoegaze into a sound that has a yielding centre that is partially protected by sharp sonic edges.

But it does carry a similar sense of emotional strength, looking inwards to find answers, which is incredibly moving. The nearest musical comparisons I can come up with for The Trees Are Talking are The Twilight Sad, The Go-Betweens, and Slowdive: music that is idiosyncratic and introspective but will find its audience and deserves to do so sooner rather than later.

The Trees Are Talking is out now via Monohands Records: it’s streaming on all major music platforms and can be downloaded on Bandcamp. For Fountain Road updates and details about Gravel Shuffle, head to Instagram. This release was supported by Creative Scotland.

Header photo by Laura Meek