A survivor, Duglas T. Stewart is one of the legends of Scottish indie. Members of The Vaselines and The Pastels have done time in his band BMX Bandits, and the group itself was formed by Stewart and Sean Dickson before Dickson went off to The Soup Dragons. But it's Stewart who's been the mainstay in BMX Bandits and while the wait has been long, BMX Bandits have finally delivered their masterpiece.
Dreamers on the Run, out this week, is a revelation, and one of the best things I've heard in 2024. Drawing upon influences as wide ranging as Van Dyke Parks, Nilsson, and Scott Walker, and hitting a style at times that's similar to that of era peers The High Llamas and The Divine Comedy, Duglas T. Stewart offers up here a really breathtaking album. The tunes are lush and playful in spots, even as they remain more complex than your standard UK indie (even that produced by other legends). This is a record of immense warmth, and one which stands as perhaps the best long-player Stewart's ever produced.
Working with Andrew Pattie, Duglas T. Stewart here serves up songs which are expansive in their musical vision, and intimate, if not personal in their emotions. The press mentions David Axelrod as point of inspiration for the opening title cut, while "Time to Get Away" has that happy-sad vibe the best Sean O'Hagan compositions possess, combined with a sense of escape that is invigorating. Dreamers on the Run is a sort of concept album, or at least one with the tracks linked in a thematic sense.
The second stretch of Dreamers on the Run opens with "My Name Is Duglas (Don’t Listen To What They Say)" following a brief, odd appearance by Jowe Head (Swell Maps). It's an achingly beautiful number, and sort of the anchor of the entire project, with the lyrics about being "not quite right" a reference to Stewart's own health issues. This is, after all, an album 10 years in the making and that fact gives even the simplest of refrains an added poignancy.
Dreamers on the Run is a marriage of styles. There's a hint of pre-Beatles traditions here, certainly lots of bits that suggest a careful reading of late Sixties styles, and other touches that are downright classical elsewhere. Duglas T. Stewart is genius enough to know where he needs assistance, and through a deft deployment of other band members and contributors, he's achieved a career milestone here on what is, arguably, his most personal release to date. A rare record that demands to be listened to in order in one sitting, this is a real charmer of a long-player. An album to fall in love to, and fall in love with, Dreamers on the Run is a heartwarming success.
Dreamers on the Run by BMX Bandits is out on Friday via Tapete Records.
[Photo: Harrison Reid]