The album title reflects a gruelling five-year period for Colin Steele following a series of events that revolved around him being unable to play his trumpet. Back in the early noughties Steele was a pivotal figure on the freshly-integrated folk and jazz club scenes in Edinburgh, and this led to recognition on the continent following a recording Through the Waves for the high profile German ACT label in 2004. While his most recent release in 2009 titled Stramash had a more direct link to Celtic folk music, Even in the Darkest Places sees Steele attach his folk-song instincts to a cool contemporary Euro-jazz sound. It features some beautiful playing from all concerned including the yearning, melody-driven sax of Michael Buckley and the similarly elegant Dave Milligan on piano, a man entirely on the same wavelength as his band leader. The rebirth of Steele as trumpeter has given him a darker and more reflective tone than before while his airily bright, tuneful compositions are at a high level. It makes for a spirited comeback.

Jazzwise spoke to Colin Steele about the album

Can you tell us a bit about the tough challenges that you faced artistically during the past five years?

I took some bad advice on trumpet-playing a few years back. I tried to improve my technique but ended up a total mess, unable to play. It took a long time to get it all working again. More than anything now I just feel great joy and relief that I can play and work again. I worry less about my limitations.

How do you feel that your trumpet-playing has changed as a result?

The answer to this changes almost daily – sometimes I feel I'm stronger, with a better tone and that I have an original voice, other days, I just feel like a complete beginner.

At the turn of the millennium you were part of a very fertile scene in Edinburgh in which jazz musicians collaborated very closely with folk musicians. Can you tell us what's happening now in the city?

That was a golden era, with a jazz club to develop the music (Henry's Cellar Bar) a record company set up to promote recordings (Caber) as well as a sympathetic Arts Council. Sadly, there's far less going on now up here – less places to play, less collaborations, less real innovation. Having said that there are still fantastic creative musicians who manage, against the odds, to make and record new music.

The influence of folk song still seems to be the foundation on which you have developed your original material, but on the new CD is it perhaps not as dominating an influence as it once was…

Yes, I think you're right. Partly because I really pushed that envelope with the Stramash project, with all the fiddles, whistles and bagpipes, it feels like less of a necessity to do that now. In addition to this, and I've only realized this because of your question, I've been working far less with musicians in the folk scene recently. As it's no longer a language I hear every day, I suppose I'm far less likely to be inspired by it. There has never been a drive for me to write in one style or another, it's just whatever tunes happen to drop into my head!

What is the track ‘Independence Song’ about and where do you stand on issues such as Brexit as it affects the situation in Scotland?

‘Independence song’ is a joyful celebration of the day when Scotland's future isn't decided by Daily Mail readers! Seriously, there is an enormous fundamental difference in the way England and Scotland votes – we would never vote for a Tory government for example, as well as voting overwhelmingly to stay in Europe. It's long past time for each of our nations to go our separate ways so that we are able to make all the important decisions for ourselves.