This is a Greek tragedy that has a happy ending.

Glasgow group Trembling Bells looked to Ancient Greek and Roman tales while preparing new album The Sovereign Self - and they’ve been rewarded with some of the best reviews of their career.

The new record has a heavier, rockier sound than their previous releases, and drummer and songwriter Alex Neilson indulged his darker side throughout.

“I’m massively interested in the classical period in general, and Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Tales From Ovid by Ted Hughes were very influential to me,” he explains.

“I was blown away by that, and it was a real gateway into what I was wanting - then there was Sophocles (the Greek dramatist) and his Oedipus plays, and that was particularly relevant. That feeling of being propulsive towards your own doom, or falling helpless into a void, and where all these things that define you as a great person are also destined to consume you and destroy you, that was really interesting to me.

“I was going through some personal crises at the time, mainly to do with the breakdown of a relationship, so I suppose reading these tragedies were giving some poetic significance to my smaller scale.”

Given Alex’s words it seems possible that his bandmates needed to keep him away from any sharp objects for a bit. Luckily, everything has paid off on The Sovereign Self, their fifth record and one that’s the fiercest of the band’s career.

Aided by a second guitarist having joined the line-up (Alasdair Mitchell), the fivesome have tilted towards rock more than before, perhaps a surprise given that they’ve spent part of the past couple of years working with Mike Heron, of the Incredible String Band.

That was a group Trembling Bells were often compared to, particularly in their early days as they veered between psychedelic folk, Americana and prog rock.

They’ve now expanded the sound further, with new tracks switching from the harshness of opener 'Tween the Womb and the Tomb to lovely harmonies on The Singing Blood.

“It’s difficult for me to really be objective about it, but other people have said that with each album we change quite a lot,” says Alex.

“To me it’s just the natural evolution of the band. It’s not a conscious thing where we’re going ’let’s try something different’, it’s just the way things have charted themselves. It’s also helped by having a second guitar player on board, which has helped beef up the sound.”

Some bands might sneer at any literary influences, but Trembling Bells embrace it. The record title takes its name from a quote by the playwright Dennis Potter, when he was discussing his classic The Singing Detective, and Potter’s work was a huge influence on Alex’s own songwriting.

“They’re probably the closest things I’ve ever encountered to the way that my mind does work,” he explains.

“I guess some of his stuff is quite autobiographical and he’s harvesting things from that (for fictional ideas) and it’s also quite located in a specific place, which is his upbringing in the English/Welsh border. That’s interesting to me, the places that you come from and experience, and how you mythologize it a bit.”

Currently on tour, the group will wrap their travels up at the Glad Café on Friday August 14. It’s a venue that Alex, who’s originally from Leeds, has a lot of time for.

“It’ll be celebratory, a real homecoming,” he says.

“I really love the Glad Café, they’re so enterprising, inclusive and they’ve really added a lot to Glasgow. It’ll be special to be playing there in particular, because they’ve made a big contribution since opening. There’s a generosity of spirit there and it’s very welcoming, so it’s a really valuable spot.”

Alex mentions keeping his mind active at one point, and he’s clearly got a range of projects on the go. The group are currently planning to release a traditional folk album with vocals from the comedian Stewart Lee, who’s long been a fan of their work, and they were recently the house band at a special 80th birthday tribute night for folk legend Shirley Collins.

“That was like a dream come true,” adds Alex.

“She’s been an incalculable influence on me, so that was like Bob Dylan asking if I’d jam with him or something. She’s asked me to drum on her next album, which will be her first in decades, so that’s incredible too.”

Trembling Bells, Glad Café, Friday, £12, 7pm