KT Tunstall News

Since Franz Ferdinand burst onto the international scene three years ago, Scotland has become the United Kingdom's leading hotbed of new talent.

In the past 12 months alone, Paolo Nutini, the Fratellis and the View have all stormed the U.K. charts, while Snow Patrol -- which relocated to Glasgow from its native Northern Ireland -- scored 2006's best-selling U.K. album with "Eyes Open," racking up more than 1.5 million sales, according to the BPI, a U.K. music label trade group.

"More Scottish artists are achieving success than have done in the past 20 years," says Geoff Ellis, CEO of Scotland's largest live promoter, Glasgow-based DF Concerts.

"Franz Ferdinand started it all," says Jon Lawlor, singer with the Fratellis. "It was great to have a band from Glasgow that wasn't Simple Minds or Texas -- one that you could listen to and enjoy."

Many industry experts believe that Scotland's distance from the music and media industries in London enables artists to develop organically. Significantly, most of the acts to enjoy breakout success in the past five years -- including Franz Ferdinand, KT Tunstall and Mylo -- have chosen to remain based in Scotland.

Rising electronica star Calvin Harris learned the hard way about relocating to London. "I thought it would be easier to get signed," he says about a spell spent in the U.K. capital before a return to his native Dumfries saw him land deals with EMI Publishing and Sony BMG. "It was just easier to throw my money away."

"The last band I recall recommending that acts move to London was Travis," influential BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio Scotland DJ Vic Galloway says. "I'm glad more people are staying in Scotland, they are bringing the industry to them."

Local executives are quick to point out that the most successful new Scottish acts are all signed to London labels. But there is optimism that a local label could soon break an act across the United Kingdom and have international success via licensing.

"The talent is here, the business brains are here, and I'm sure we will see it," Glasgow-based music lawyer Murray Buchanan says.

Edinburgh-based label the Music Kitchen, co-owned by Gordon Campbell and former Bay City Rollers guitarist Stuart "Woody" Wood, is gearing up to achieve such home-grown success.

They aim to use Scotland as a launch pad for the MacDonald Brothers, former contestants on TV talent show "The 'X' Factor." The band -- which remained on the show for many weeks thanks to a loyal Scottish block vote, despite negative comments from judge Simon Cowell -- says it turned down deals with London majors to sign with the indie. The brothers' self-titled debut album was released April 2.

While Scottish acts invariably chart higher in the unpublished Scottish chart than in the U.K.-wide survey, CD album sales in Scotland are in line with the rest of the United Kingdom. In 2006, Scots accounted for 9% of total U.K. album sales, according to the BPI, roughly reflecting the country's proportion of the British population.

Such retailers as Fopp founder Gordon Montgomery -- whose chain started life as a Glasgow record stall -- and HMV specialist buyer Philippa Morgan, suggest that tastes vary from one city to another.

"They like country in Glasgow, you sell a lot more jazz in Edinburgh and a lot of folk music in Aberdeen and Inverness," Morgan says.

A policy of supporting small releases contributes substantially to sales at leading Glasgow indie store Avalanche Records -- part of a three-store chain. Franchise owner Sandy McLean believes the survival of brick-and-mortar retailers is based on acting as a focal point for the scene -- the Fratellis came together via an ad posted in his shop.

Reuters/Billboard