BERTA KENNEDY
LAST OF THE FREE
Single: Free-Swimming
Album: Last of the Free The debut album by Last of the Free combines electronica with Scottish music archive footage and recordings to create a late night raving, ceilidh experience. Definitely erring more on the electronica side than the Scottish music side, it’s a love letter to Scotland through synths.
Channeling the aquatic quality you would expect from a song called ‘Free-Swimming’, Greenock producer/singer-songwriter Berta Kennedy’s latest single is an alt-pop tune with attitude. Guitarheavy, with punchy drums and synths alongside Kennedy’s crisp vocals, there’s some serious production value on this track. Fresh-sounding and experimental, the lyrics of ‘Free-Swimming’ focus on embracing your own power and the freedom this brings. Considering Kennedy is a one-woman show – writing, recording, producing and mastering her own tracks – this seems more than fitting. ‘Free-Swimming’ will be released on 13th August Lily Black
Archived recording of Gaelic conversations and field recordings of nature lead us into the Scottish Highlands, whilst gentle synths swell, always underneath a driving electronic beat. A euphoric feeling of freedom runs through this album, with the interview with cyclist Bill Houston encouraging us to ‘see places no tourists have been before’. Last of the Free starts by using samples of the most gorgeous reel from the award-winning Kinnaris Quintet, revelling in the natural woody sounds of the strings, before delving into swirling rhythms and interlocking electronic beats. Starting with acoustic string instruments keeps us grounded in the original source material, whilst the edited skips and stutters play with the internal rhythms of the reels in the source material and lead us firmly into the electronic realm for the remainder of the album. As we carry on through the album, we lose our sense of the outdoors, and the electronica takes over – the editing and mixing of the source material with the electronics is expertly manipulated so the tracks are cohesive and natural. One for fans of Martyn Bennett, The Avalanches, Mr. Scruff, and Inyal. Last of the Free was released on 18th June through Tonic Note Records Sam MacAdam
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