Lou Mclean - Outline of a girl (2026)

The debut album from Lou Mclean. Recorded at Knockwood Studios in Leith, 'Outline of a girl' unfolds as a lyrically-focused yet sonically wide-ranging debut, blending pop songwriting with influences drawn from folk tradition, post punk and disco. Across the album, Mclean examines the archetypes imposed on women and the ways in which those roles limit autonomy, visibility and voice, moving between themes of labour, friendship, trauma, desire and creative survival.

The breadth of the album is matched by an outstanding line-up of musicians from across Scotland’s music scene, including Lesley McLaren on drums (The Hedrons, Altered Images), Dave McGowan on bass (Belle & Sebastian, Teenage Fanclub), Carron Millar on guitar (Kirsteen Harvey, Day Sleeper), Graham Gordon on sitar with Gus Harrower on keys and Cariss Crosbie & Katya Mansell on backing vocals.

The majority of players involved in the creation of Outline of a girl were women, a synchronistic reflection of how traditional worksongs were formed. Marking the first time Mclean recorded in a studio with a band live off the floor, many of the songs were completed in a handful of takes,
with the tracks then recorded over the space of four days. This collaborative, spontaneous and experimental approach captures a special energy that is felt throughout the record. Throughout the album, a range of influences can be heard as Mclean nods to pivotal bands and performers from across the decades: from Jefferson Airplane, The Beatles and early 1960s girl groups, through to the more contemporary sounds of No Doubt, Alanis Morissette, Taylor Swift and Chappell Roan.

Conceived as a musical manifesto, the album reflects the lived experiences of women and girls across history. Drawing on the tradition of work songs, where women once sang truths that could not be spoken aloud, the album honours the invisible labour of working class women whose stories were passed down through song rather than written record. Across ten tracks, Mclean explores physical and emotional labour imposed upon women that limit their capacity to exist fully, reframing them as collective experiences rather than individual burdens.

The album’s first single Desire Lines introduced the project, exploring dating app fatigue and the emotional labour of modern intimacy, and received early support from BBC Radio Scotland, The Arts Mix and Scotland on Sunday. Elsewhere, the melodic, guitar-driven Newhaven draws inspiration from the matriarchal traditions of the Newhaven fishwives, while the disco-inflected Peace confronts recovery from trauma and the 90s-esque pop-punk jam Good content critiques competition and self-commodification within the music industry. The album draws deeply from Scottish women’s history, particularly the working lives and culture of the Newhaven fishwives, whose financial autonomy, choir and culture informed both the music and the visual world of the project. The artwork references zine culture, punk aesthetics and historic dress, including a costume inspired by Newhaven fishwives’ clothing, designed by costume maker Biz Sutton.