“Morningtide” is Scottish band Celtic Worship’s brand new 12-track studio album, exploring the rich concept of the cycle of night to day being a parallel to the journey of life with Christ. The rhythm of nocturnal darkness turning into the bright dawn is something that the Lord wove into Creation from the very beginning (Genesis 1), but it is also a picture of the binary movement from death to life – the ultimate change that Jesus enabled. “Morningtide” proclaims God’s faithfulness and His constant new mercies, crafting each song around the truth reflected by our daily rhythms. This cadenced movement is a picture of our faith, mirrored by the carefully designed album progression.
In parallel, Celtic Worship’s driving force is a desire to worship God by exploring the depth, intense beauty and theological clarity of psalms and traditional hymns – a music that has been present in Scotland for centuries. “Morningtide” allowed the band to spend time with the more distinctive elements of Scottish ecclesiastical music, giving them the chance to explore ancestral metrical psalms and the melodies they were often sung to. Yet, Celtic Worship bring a unique approach to their revisitation of such material as they infuse the native sounds of bagpipes and fiddle to bring these hymns to life and simultaneously intertwine new originals into the process. “Morningtide” is characterised by an omnipresent sense of heritage, history, and culture, and highlights the undeniable artistic brilliance and stunning sense of connection between the band members: Naomi Stirrat on vocals, Steph Macleod on vocals and acoustic, Mhairi Marwick on fiddle, Scott Wood on bagpipes and whistle, Gus Stirrat on bass, Chris Amer on electric and Ifedade Thomas on drums.
Celtic Worship introduce a new album deep in theological imagery as they delve into the theme of morning – dark to light, night to day – capturing the fundamental shape of the Gospel on so many levels. The beauty and hope of this simple movement at the heart of “Morningtide” seeks to point people back to the resurrection of Jesus, and then point them forwards with a hope that is real, true, life-giving and eternal!
