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Aug 30, 2018 Frightened Rabbit By Christopher Roberts

Back in May, Scott Hutchison, 36-year-old frontman for Scotland’s Frightened Rabbit, was found dead of apparent suicide after he was earlier reported missing by the band. Now the band have announced their first show without Hutchison; they will be playing the Sleep in the Park concert in Glasgow on December 8, which benefits the homeless and is being put on by the non-profit Social Bite. The band had agreed to perform at the event before Hutchison died and due to its charity nature they thought it would be a fitting return to the live stage. As NME reports, the band will be billed as “The Songs of Frightened Rabbit” and will be joined by various guest vocalists to fill the void left by Hutchison’s passing, including James Graham of The Twilight Sad and others to be announced.

As the BBC reports, Scott Hutchison’s brother and bandmate, Grant Hutchison, said it would be “the perfect time” for Frightened Rabbit to play together again. “We had agreed to play Sleep in the Park before Scott passed,” Grant said, “and we felt that since it was something for such a great cause that we should stick to our decision and honor Scott in the best way we know—to play the songs he wrote and continue spreading his message of kindness whilst supporting Social Bite and the amazing work they do.”

Sleep in the Park is taking place in four different parks in four different cities on the same night. Frightened Rabbit headline the Glasgow event at the city’s Kelvingrove Bandstand, Eddi Reader will perform at Aberdeen’s Duthie Park, The View’s Kyle Falconer will headline at Dundee’s Slessor Gardens, and Lulu will headline at Edinburgh’s Princess Street Gardens. Amy Macdonald and KT Tunstall will perform at all four events. Attendees are encouraged to sleep out in the park that night, to presumably get the feel of what it’s like being homeless in Scotland in December. More info on the event, which hopes to have 12,000 people take part, can be found here.

Frightened Rabbit released five studio albums: 2006’s Sing the Greys, 2008’s The Midnight Organ Fight, 2010’s The Winter of Mixed Drinks, 2013’s Pedestrian Verse, and 2016’s Painting of a Panic Attack. In 2014 Scott Hutchison released a solo album under the name Owl John. Hutchison also teamed up with his brother Grant Hutchison (also Frightened Rabbit’s drummer) and brothers Justin and James Lockey of Editors and Minor Victories to form supergroup Mastersystem, whose debut album, Dance Music, was released in April.

In April we interviewed Hutchison about the Mastersystem album. You can also revisit our 2016 interview with Hutchison on Painting of a Panic Attack and our 2014 interview with Hutchison about the Scottish Independence Referendum.

Back in May we posted three tributes to Hutchison after his passing:

Read Michael Hall’s tribute.

Read Paul Bullock’s tribute.

Read Mischa Pearlman’s tribute.

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