The Boy Who Trapped The Sun

The Isle of Lewis, situated at the very northern part of the Outer Hebrides, isn’t home to terribly many people (less than 19,000), but there are golden eagles and red deer and seals to fill in the gaps. Unlike a more mountainous neighbour like Skye, Lewis is a flat place, with a spectacular Atlantic coast and long summer nights. “It’s wild and barren, but it’s beautiful too,” says Colin MacLeod, the Lewis-born 25 year old singer and songwriter known as The Boy Who Trapped The Sun. “Lewis is totally flat and brown and the wind rattles across it. But I love it, the beaches are fantastic, I surf even though it’s too windy for really good waves, and the people are amazing. It’s just home really…” The teenage MacLeod was the singer in several thrash-punk bands, causing a stir in Lewis’s small but thriving local music scene. After a succession of jobs on Lewis, including working on an oil delivery lorry and teaching fly fishing, MacLeod eventually made his way to London, intent on becoming a solo artist. The Boy now splits his time between Lewis and south east London - about as far from Lewis as one can be while remaining in the British Isles. Both places informed and inspired The Boy Who Trapped The Sun’s debut album, ‘Fireplace.’ It’s a truly beautiful record, a set of songs that tackle the big universal themes of love and loss, of dreams and hopes with simple tools - a voice, a guitar, a piano, some strings and drums – but a clear desire to try and say something new. ‘Fireplace’ is released 12th July on Geffen