Luke Sutherland is a musician and author. Raised in Orkney and Perthshire he was a founder member of 1990s Glasgow post-rock group Long Fin Killie and then formed Bows with Danish singer Signe Høirup Wille-Jørgensen. He has performed with Mogwai and is currently a member of experimental band Rev Magnetic.

His debut novel, Jelly Roll, was nominated for the 1998 Whitbread Prize and his autobiographical 2004 novella, Venus As A Boy, was later adapted by the National Theatre of Scotland. On May 11, in a live performance at Edinburgh’s Cameo Cinema as part of this year’s Folk Film Gathering, he will premiere his new soundtrack for Ukrainian filmmaker Alexander Dovzhenko’s iconic 1930 masterpiece Earth, alongside fellow Scottish musician Seamy Wu (3.15pm).

What’s the last book you read?

How Fascism Works by Jason Stanley. It delves into what the author calls the ten pillars of fascist politics, showing how democratic societies can become vulnerable to fascism. Many of these forces seem to be at play close to home: talk of making nations great again; the exploitation of anxieties around immigration; fake news; suspicion of experts; the pursuit of equality framed as victimisation; the erosion of civil liberties …

What’s the last film you saw in a cinema?

Zone Of Interest, directed by Jonathan Glazer, centres on the life of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife, Hedwig, as they attempt to build an idyllic life for their family in a property adjacent to the concentration camp. The idealised scenes presented on-screen are the tip of an iceberg whose true enormity, while concealed off-screen, is rendered in unforgettable detail by way of Johnnie Burn’s relentlessly disquieting sound design.

What music are you currently listening to a lot?

I’m always listening to all kinds of music. What I like is when something hits the spot. Five highlights: Ima Read (ft. Njena Reddd Foxxx) by Zebra Katz, Madre (ft. Oliver Coates) by Arca, Emley Lights Us Moor (ft. Iceboy Violet) by aya, I’m A Man by Kim Gordon, and From Bearsden To Baghdad (Via The Erskine Bridge) by Dawson.

What other musical instrument(s) do you wish you could play and why?

Piano. McCoy Tyner’s work with John Coltrane – to be able to do that!

What has been your most formative cultural experience?

Learning to play the recorder in primary school. Anyone with experience of the recorder will know how inane it can sound. But we were lucky enough to have Ruby Rendall (who went on to found the Chalmers Mackay Music School in Inverurie and is a recording artist in her own right) as a music teacher. Energetic, endlessly enthusiastic, she had us playing songs by the likes of ABBA, The Buggles and The Piranhas alongside staples by Handel and Bach. Those worlds brought within real reach made me want to make music.

What’s your go-to YouTube video?

Unlikely animal encounters: an orangutan putting on some guy’s jacket; a bear rescuing a drowning crow; a cat raising chicks as her own …

What film/boxset/book/album haven’t you managed to get around to yet but will when you have the time?

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

You’re in a station or airport shop ahead of a journey. What magazine do you grab?

Spudman, featuring the latest potato industry news and developments.

Who’s your favourite comedian and why?

I don’t have a favourite anything/anyone – too much good stuff out there – so today I’ll go with Eric Andre for his ecstatic surreality.

Favourite actor?

Olivia Colman. She nails comedy, drama and the tricky stuff in between.

Favourite song?

The Golden Void by Hawkwind always lifts me outside of myself.

Favourite film?

Marketa Lazarová. Give me a two-and-three-quarter-hour, black and white, late 1960s Czech epic set in the 13th century during the transition from paganism to Christianity, throw in a feud, a doomed romance, and I’m quite happy.

Recommend a TV box-set and say why it’s so good …

Succession. A merciless and hilarious dissection of human frailty.

Recommend a podcast …

Long Shadow: Rise Of The American Far Right traces a line of cause and effect from the Waco siege to the Capitol attack. It’s a fascinating albeit occasionally grim listen, and provides insightful speculation as to where America may be heading.

Recommend an album …

Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush. Evocative, visionary, unprecedented, brilliantly played and produced. A tear-jerker.

Recommend a novel …

Another Country by James Baldwin. His nuanced take on US social and racial dynamics is as relevant as ever.

Blur or Oasis?

Hobson’s choice.

Irvine Welsh or Robert Louis Stevenson?

Draw.

Edinburgh or Glasgow?

Edinburgh from 7am to 7pm, Glasgow from 7pm to 7am.

Vinyl or MP3?

Vinyl.