Photo: Stephanie Gibson
After a global trek, celebrated Scottish troubadour John Douglas delivers a live acoustic rendition of his song Weightlifting. Don’t forget this text:
It’s been a banner year for Douglas, marked by a headline tour in the UK, the launch of his self-titled debut through Reveal Records, the impressive resurgence of Trashcan Sinatra’s Cake album in the Top 40 charts following its reissue, and the debut of a documentary film about Trashcan Sinatras.” This performance also offers a taste of Douglas’ upcoming Lost in North America Tour – Part One, providing an intimate look at the talent, charm, and depth that have solidified his place as a revered songwriter.
Weightlifting marks the second chapter in Douglas’s Me & Midnight Sessions. From Kilmarnock, Scotland, to Hartford, Connecticut, with detours through Japan, and a brush with the landed gentry in Ayr County Court, where their “banishment from honest toil” finally ended, Douglas and his crew surfaced with a landmark record. It’s an album brimming with introspective guitar ballads reminiscent of solo efforts by Pulp’s Richard Hawley, The Bible’s Boo Hewerdine, and The Fat Lady Sings’ Nick Kelly. Throughout the album, Douglas’s voice carries a tender, intimate quality, like a lullaby whispered in the quiet of night.
“It took us a long time to make that record due to various hilarious sidetracks,” quips Douglas. “We returned from all those adventures with songs of love, loss, redemption, forgiveness, bravado, friendship, wisdom, peace and tranquility. Songs that we swore ourselves to… and here we are twenty years on and it looks like we somehow built them to last. Somehow, from the chaotic depths, we found ourselves at the top of our game. It’s a miracle of a record.”
The video for Weightlifting was shot in a Glasgow flat, caught in the crossfire of a young couple’s fading love story. The air was thick with the quiet tension of a breakup, a place where memories were packing their bags, ready to leave. In this bittersweet setting, Douglas played his acoustic set to an empty room—a backdrop of soon-to-be-abandoned moments. The space, caught in that in-between of what was and what will be, gave his guitar a melancholic echo and his voice a raw edge, fitting for a tune that treads the line between heartache and healing.
“On the night of my filming, I had helped one of them move out the final pieces of furniture and accompanied them as they said goodbye to what they used to call home,” Douglas says. “I returned later, on my own, to the now empty flat… just before midnight… and filmed myself singing what felt like a very appropriate song. A bittersweet night that will hopefully allow a healing to begin and for pain to be left behind. I changed the lyric a little to suit the mood.”
Listen to John Douglas’s debut album below, or stream it here.
Throughout October, Douglas takes to American stages, showcasing original material and new recordings of beloved Trashcan Sinatras’ material. He will be joined by Lily Vakili of Vakili Band and award-winning singer-songwriter Lauren Calve at various dates. Attendees of two special shows will be treated to guest appearances by fellow Trashcan Sinatras Frank Reader and Paul Livingston in Seattle.
His Lost in North America Tour – Part One kicks off in Los Angeles on October 1. You can purchase tickets here.
Watch the teaser:
* with Lily Vakili of Vakili Band
** with Lauren Calve
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