Scottish New Music Round-up: September 2025
Music lovers of all types can find tunes on the Scottish scene this September, but we’re most excited for concept albums, satirical songwriting and strong emotional narratives from artists like Goodnight Louisa, Emma Pollock and Rudi Zygadlo
Between last month’s festival frenzy and sold-out stadium gigs, we’ve got a lot to catch up on. In late July, we heard from feminist songwriting collective Hen Hoose (Wipe Out) and psych four-piece Floating Heads (Drug Tent), while in August we missed tracks by Possibly Jamie (FTDJ), Rianne Downey (Angel), Quiet Man (Good Enough), Pictish Trail (Hold It), AiiTee (Eli), Slime City (You Do the Math(s)) and a collaboration between EYVE and LuckyBabe (Miniskirt B).
Now that it’s September and the dust has settled, the wait is finally over for a new album from Goodnight Louisa; the synth artist hinted at a new record in our Spotlight On... New Scottish Music in 2025 feature back in January, so we couldn’t be more excited for Marathon's release on the 26th. Louise McCraw’s sophomore record has been preceded by a slew of singles, including Grace Jones and Jennifer Aniston – the latter of which is accompanied by an ultra-indulgent music video that brings to mind The Substance more than it does Friends. Dark and dreamy synth notes pair well with McCraw’s siren song about the eternal youth of the eponymous icon: 'Life is just a pattern of good liars and good manners and it doesn’t really matter / Cause soon I’ll look like Jennifer Aniston'.
The LP also mentions Saint Bernadette on immaculate dance track Playboy, and don’t miss the devastating, orchestral ode to Drew Barrymore. Beats are complex and crystalline across the album, and there’s a vast palette of bittersweet and ephemeral emotions covered – Sunday School interchanges bassy and brassy effects to create a high-tempo hit, and Polaroids From Malta pairs hard rock sounds with lyrical themes of melancholy and nostalgia. Marathon is an aesthetic, cinematic synth album that captures the glamour of the icons and idols that inspire McCraw, while still communicating the darker reality of life when all eyes are on you.
On the same day, founding member of Scottish record label Chemikal Underground, Emma Pollock releases Begging the Night to Take Hold (26 Sep), her first full-length solo record in nine years. In the wake of the pandemic, amidst the loss of relatives and a struggle for self-discovery after an autism diagnosis, Pollock penned this series of baroque rock ballads pairing piano, synth and strings. Symphonies like Rapid Rush of Red belie the pain of quarrelling with a loved one, and Marchtown is a moving memoriam for Mary Queen of Scots; despite the displacement in time, Pollock brings as personal a performance to each, and her journey towards healing is deftly written across all ten tracks.
Rudi Zygadlo. Credit: Rudi Zygadlo.
If that’s too long to wait, AUTO FICTION, the newest narrative record by Scottish artist Rudi Zygadlo, is out on 12 September. The anti-AI artist has scored the story of an insecure man who turns to a virtual girlfriend, making use of glam rock instrumentation, looping and layering self-loathing soliloquies, and mixing in an eclectic set of literary references, from Trainspotting in Finasteride to Erysichthon of Thessaly in Autophag. Enter AUTO FICTION for a listening experience that’s satirical, smooth and wonderfully sleazy.
From a seasoned storyteller to a first-time concept album, on the same day Edinburgh’s Jack Hinks releases Kintsugi, a suite of previously released singles now arranged into a model of the stages of grief. Indie label Last Night From Glasgow have two debuts on the 26th – a self-titled release by neo-disco outfit QUAD90, and Rapture Party, the first outing by synth-pop Highlanders The Joshua Hotel. Over on page 29 we speak to indie sibling duo The Cords about their eponymous debut, and if you turn back a page you'll find full reviews of Biffy Clyro’s Futique, Former Champ’s i saw you in paradise, Dancer’s More or Less and Joanne Robertson's Blurrr.
Folk arrives in force this autumn. On 5 September, decorated virtuoso Karen Marshalsay releases Eadarainn a’ Chruit : Between Us the Harp, a collection of 16 compositions, both original and traditional, that showcase the range and impact of one of trad music’s most intricate instruments. Ballad Lines, a coming-of-age queer musical that modernises traditional Scottish and Appalachian sounds, launches their original cast recording on 12 September, followed by a one-off performance at Cottier’s on the 15th. And back in July, Mairi Sutherland’s homemade animated music video for I’d Be Bored revealed the folk guitarist as a capable visual artist, so expect more marginalia when her debut EP Uncanny Comparisons drops (19 Sep).
Elsewhere, post-rock maestro Hamish Hawk releases Covers II (5 Sep), showcasing his irresistible multi-instrumentalism through the songwriting of Madonna, Pet Shop Boys and others, while on the same day Glasgow jazz pianist Paul Harrison releases Encontros, interpreting the music of Brazilian legend Egberto Gismonti. Later in the month, pop heads should chase down Charly Miller’s debut EP, I NEED THERAPY (19 Sep). To wrap up with some singles, Grow Up give us Beach (4 Sep), Eleanor Hickey releases Pesky Rain (12 Sep) and Vanderlye’s Blackout Sky arrives on the 19th.
Listen to our New Scottish Music playlist on Spotify or YouTube, updated every Friday, and check out our new Music Now podcast – listen to our chats with Malin Lewis and Alice Faye