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On this day, 5 August 1990, Scottish rock band Big Country played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall.
Formed in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1981 by lead singer and guitarist Stuart Adamson (formerly of the Skids) alongside guitarist Bruce Watson, bassist Tony Butler and drummer Mark Brzezicki.
Rising to prominence in the early to mid‑1980s, they pioneered a distinctive guitar-driven sound that fused alternative rock, new wave and Celtic folk traditions designed to mimic bagpipes and fiddle through innovative use of effects such as the MXR pitch transposer and e‑bow.
Their debut album The Crossing (1983) reached No. 3 in the UK and delivered their only U.S. Top 40 hit, “In a Big Country”. Follow‑ups Steeltown (1984) and The Seer (1986) also landed in the UK top ten, with The Seer producing the Irish No. 1 hit “Look Away” and featuring a collaboration with Kate Bush on its title track.
After Adamson’s death by suicide in December 2001, the classic lineup disbanded. Surviving members reunited in 2007 for anniversary tours, later joined by singer Mike Peters and changing bassists, culminating in the 2013 album The Journey, their first new studio release in 14 years.
