Hamish doesn’t mess around. The Stroud songwriter has been carrying these songs since 2012, and now they’re finally out in the world on Significant Others, a 15-track, hour-plus album that feels like a lifetime in the making. And in a way, it is.
Hamish has a simple rule for his music: good melody, good words. That’s it. If it doesn’t give him goosebumps, it’s not done. And he’s got the influences to back it up—Dylan, Bowie, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, James Taylor, Al Stewart, Queen, John Grant, Radiohead, Rufus Wainwright, and even Verdi. That’s a wild mix, but Hamish makes it work because he’s not trying to be any of them. He’s just being himself.
The backstory is wild. The album was started in 2012, then lost, found, lost again. Work, family, mental health—life kept getting in the way. Then a guy named Chris Oldfield rented a cabin in Hamish’s garden. Turns out Oldfield had played in and produced Dreadzone. Together, they dug up the old tracks and started shaping them into something real. Using Ableton and a crew of local musicians, they wrestled the whole thing into what you hear now.
The recording happened at home, in a cabin on Hamish’s deck. Local musicians would come by, rehearse around a big fire pit, and entertain the neighbours. For percussion on one track, they used an empty tin filled with rice. That’s the kind of creative, no-frills approach that makes this record feel alive. Good mics, good monitors, good ears, good atmosphere. That’s all they needed.
The album is called Significant Others, and that title means everything. There are songs written for each of Hamish’s three children right after they were born: “Helpless” for Pip, “I’m Prepared To Wait” for Grace, and “Love All Around” for Noah. His parents, who are 90 and 80, love dancing to “Don’t Try And Break My Heart“. That’s the heart of this record—family, love, and the people who shape us.
The track list is deep. “I’d Never Make It Through” and “Bruhaha” kick things off strong. “Funny One” ends with a nod to Verdi. “Struggled“, “Short Sharp Shock Of Your Love“, and “The End Is Always Hard” round out the journey. Every track has something Hamish loves. If it gives him goosebumps, it stays.
His producer, Chris Oldfield, said it was an honour to work with Hamish. That’s a big statement from a guy who’s been in the industry. But you can hear why. This isn’t a polished, plastic record. It’s raw, honest, and full of real emotion. It’s the sound of a man who kept going even when everything tried to stop him.
Significant Others is out now. Give it a listen. It might just give you goosebumps too.
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