Strong, dusky vocals and a moodily ambient production marks ‘Live From the Carron Bothy’, the debut EP from Last Boy, a selection of old and original Scottish bothy ballads. The live element of the release allows the earthy, intimate origins of these ballads to shine through: it’s a stripped back sound that feels authentic and deferential to tradition, with the bothy fire snapping behind covers of long-established songs such as ‘The Dowie Dens o’ Yarrow’.
The accompanying film, shot by Craig McIntosh, is an immersive and stunningly rendered asset to the recording, another being the concluding track of the EP, written by Last Boy himself. ‘The Boy With Blood on His Hands’, entirely without accompaniment, yet movingly sung in the style of a traditional bothy ballad, makes you feel firmly pulled into the present day, and suggests an exciting flexibility for an ancient form. A suppleness which I hope Last Boy explores with similar flair in the future.
Live From the Carron Bothy is out now
Main Photo Credit: Craig McIntosh
