McCully/Mackay – The Unicorns Are Screaming

The South African Rock Encyclopedia > Rock Legends > 2000s > McCully/Mackay > Discography > The Unicorns Are Screaming

Tracks

1. The Unicorns Are Screaming! – Full Version [7:15]
2. Earth Odyssey [5:18]
3. Haunted Asteroid [2:26]
4. Waiting for the Arrival [4:09]
5. Apocalypse Rising [2:51]
6. Hooked on the Blue Sea [4:39]
7. Freedom Isn’t Easy [4:29]
8. The Raven Waits [4:05]
9. Where Do We Go? [4:36]
10. Who Will Sing Our Song? [4:38]

Release information

Streaming / Download: 30 October 202o, LTE for Terence McCullagh

Musicians

• Tully McCully: vocals, drums, bass, guitars
• Gordon Mackay: keyboards, violin, vocals

Press release

McCully/Mackay Prog Rock project

LTE Distribution Portal, 15 August 2020

Terence (Tully) McCullagh has pulled in keyboard specialist Gordon Mackay to partner with him on his first solo album. Tully and Gordon have performed together in McCully Workshop, but what they are offering this time is very different to the sort of music they do in their band. 

Tully started out recording this new material on his own and then saw that it would be appropriate to have an instrument that is featured in solos and special parts of the songs. Tully is a multi-instrumentalist with bass and guitar being his specialities.  Adding Gordon, who is classically schooled and a virtuoso electric keyboard player, provided just the right additional elements required for the musical style they are recording.

Gordon is the brother of well known rock musician, Duncan Mackay, who made a name for himself in the UK in the 1980s, notably with the band Cockney Rebel. The two brothers worked together in the Johannesburg jazz/rock scene before Duncan returned to the UK. 
Gordon spent a lot of time composing music for film and TV as well as doing some orchestral compositions for ballet choreography. He continues to perform live and works as a session player.

Tully is a star in the South African rock scene with many hits to his name, both with his own band and with other artists. Though he is better known for his pop rock and commercial repertoire, his own listening preferences were never fully reflected in his releases, most probably because they are not commercial. 

He says, “I wanted to do this project for some time, in fact I decided to do it well before the Corona lockdown came along. I have been making music for different markets and in different styles for so many years and this time I am making it for myself …… and anybody else that wants to hear what I personally love, stuff like King Crimson, Yes and Emerson, Lake and Palmer.”

There is a lot of fantasy as well as personal lyrics in the new songs. The working title for the album is Unicorns.