Photo courtesy of Woodpigeon.

The time Woodpigeon‘s Mark Andrew Hamilton spent living in Edinburgh, Scotland nurtured his songwriting — and created a situation where his foot needed nurturing as well. That’s what his new track “Edinburgh” is about. “The song is an ode to Arthur’s Seat, the biggest hill in the city,” Hamilton tells Hive. “I was told during my time living in Edinburgh that one wasn’t a man until he walked up to the peak. On my first walk up I managed to stress-fracture one of my feet, but limped up to the top so I could finally call myself a man. I kind of feared this injury as a bad omen for my adulthood, but so far, so good.”

This manly acomplishment isn’t necessarily reflected in the song’s tone, though. “Edinburgh’ demonstrates the kind of sweeping storytelling I’m particularly interested in lyrically these days, as well as the use of instrumentation in a different way,” he says. “It’s a thrill to make a bit of minor-key triumphant racket for some rather downcast imagery.”

Woodpigeon’s new album, Thumbtacks + Glue, is out February 26 on Boompa. Stream “Edinburgh” below: