The soundtrack to our Friday is from Scottish sister duo Bratakus and their new album Hagridden.
Formed in 2015 in the remote village of Tomintoul in the Highlands, sisters Brèagha (guitar and vocals) and Onnagh (bass and vocals) quickly carved out their own path. Without a live drummer due to their isolated location, they turned the challenge into an opportunity, leaning into DIY resourcefulness and making their sound even stronger.
“We programmed some drum tracks, plugged in for our first practice and instantly it just felt like we already had a band, so we’ve been playing like that ever since! What started out as a logistical issue now feels like a big part of our identity and we just love playing as a two piece.”
Brèagha
Their latest album, Hagridden, dives into feminism, animal rights, media brainwashing, and sweatshop exploitation head-on. Bratakus keeps up the pace, urging you to find your own voice and fight through every obstacle.
Originally recorded three years ago, the first version of Hagridden was lost to the void after a laptop broke. The sisters returned to the studio, determined to start again. Brèagha shares the following about the album title and how it came to mirror the journey of its creation:
“We decided to call the album ‘Hagridden’ before we even recorded it, but it’s been a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy because so many barriers came up when we were trying to get it recorded and released that it turned into a bit of a nightmare, so the next album might be called ‘Smooth Sailing’ to avoid cursing ourselves again. It definitely sounds way better than the first version, so in a way I’m glad it worked out this way, but we were so gutted when it happened.”
On Hagridden, the duo teamed up with producer Tommy Duffin for live drums.
“Our first record is all programmed drums, and that’s what we were planning for this album too. We actually recorded every song with a drum machine, but our producer Tommy Duffin (renowned Scottish drummer and recording engineer) played with us and drummed on the album. He recorded our first album, so it was great to work with him again.”
Brèagha
Bratakus carve out their own bratty subgenre of punk rock, with raw vocals, fierce beats, jagged guitars, and a message of empowerment that demands to be heard. Check out Hagridden here.
Upcoming live dates:
18/02 – Supersonic, Paris (FRANCE)
19/02 – The Grace, London
20/02 – The Exchange, Bristol
21/02 – Star & Garter, Manchester
29/02 – McChuills, Glasgow
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