Punky Scottish sisters Bratakus have unleashed another taste of their forthcoming second album, and it features a very special guest.
Turnstile, released today, is the third single from Hagridden, which is set for release on Venn Records on February 13.
The album was recorded and produced by Johan Gustafsson, bass player with Swedish garage rockers The Hives, after Bratakus struck up a friendship with the band on tour.
And while Bratakus normally play with programmed drums, Hives drummer Chris Dangerous came in and added his unique energy to Turnstile.
Surprise drummer
“Johan surprised us with Chris’s feature on this track,” remembers guitarist and vocalist Brèagha Cuinn.
“The whole recording session was a bit of a last-minute experience, but when we were leaving Johan asked if we would mind him experimenting and adding real drums to one of the songs to see how it would sound.
“We said we didn’t mind, and then we didn’t hear anything for a few weeks. We were on the ferry on our way back from a gig when we got the email with the track and found out that Chris had actually come in to record drums for us!
“We played it live together in Barcelona when we were on tour with The Hives and to this day it’s the only time we’ve ever performed with a human drummer!”
Formed in 2015 by sisters Brèagha (guitar and vocals) and Onnagh (bass and vocals) outside a small whiskey village, Tomintoul, in the Highlands, Bratakus have been fiercely DIY since their inception.
They ran their own label, Screaming Babies Records, and with no music on streaming services and no booking agent, they have already taken the band as far as Japan, supported The Hives on tour and secured airplay from BBC Scotland, among others.
Turnstile is the third single taken from Hagridden, after Final Girls and Tokened earlier this year. It’s drawn from experiences Bratakus have had where they have felt patronised and judged because of their appearance.
‘Not punky enough’
“I constantly get comments at our gigs about how I don’t look punky enough, which is so weird to me because in my mind punk is an ideology, a way of thinking and a way of channelling your anger about things that are happening in the world, so I just think my clothes are irrelevant,” explains Brèagh.
“Plus, punk is also supposed to be about expressing yourself in the way that you choose, so it always feels strange to be told that the way I’m choosing is wrong! This whole mindset extends to people repeatedly telling me how shocked they are that I have such a ‘big voice’ for such a ‘tiny girl’.
“I think it’s all part of a bigger societal problem where anything feminine is viewed as weaker or smaller or less powerful. If you’ve heard a baby screaming, then you know that what size you are has nothing to do with how loud you can be!”
You can pre-order Hagridden HERE.
