Redolent win Scottish Album of the Year award 2024

SAY Award Three members of redolent, two male and one female, stand holding their award trophy in front of a wall of sponsor logos — Redolent take the prize for their debut album Dinny Greet

Electronic-indie band Redolent have won the 2024 Scottish Album of the Year award for their debut album Dinny Greet.

The Edinburgh five-piece – made up of brothers Danny and Robin Herbert, Andrew Turnbull, Robbie White and Alice Hancock – collected the £20,000 prize at a ceremony in Stirling’s Albert Halls on Thursday night.

The 13th annual award also paid tribute to Scots-Canadian musician Martyn Bennett, who died from Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2005.

Bennett’s final record Grit was given the Modern Scottish Classic award.

Redolent took the top prize from a shortlist including Arab Strap, Barry Can’t Swim, Becky Sikasa and Rachel Sermanni.

Their experimental album Dinny Greet – which means “don’t cry” in Scots – was released to critical acclaim in May this year.

The band collected the £20,000 prize at a ceremony in Stirling’s Albert Halls

Accepting the award, Redolent’s Danny Herbert said it felt like a childhood dream.

He said: “I always feel like we’re sprinting behind the pack trying to keep up and all I’ve wanted to do is contribute something.

“I’m potentially also gonna greet right now which is ironic.

“We’re just so grateful this helps us keep this wee club that we’ve got going.”

Robert Kilpatrick, creative director of the Scottish Music Industry Association, praised Redolent’s album for its “sharp social commentary and inventive electronic textures”.

He added: “Redolent’s win is a testament to the importance of recognising and investing in Scotland’s diverse creative talent.”

Martin Bennett’s album Grit was created when he could no longer play his instruments

Martyn Bennett sits at a vinyl mixing deck, flanked by large speakers on stand in a room with a large yellow street grit bin in below the window. a statuette is casting a shadow of a waving figure on the wall. — Martin Bennett’s album Grit was created when he could no longer play his instruments

The Modern Scottish Classic award was presented to Martyn Bennett’s wife Kirsten and close friend BJ Stewart.

Grit was released 15 months before his death from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at the age of 33.

The album was created when his illness meant he could no longer play his instruments. It is widely credited for starting the musical evolution of Celtic fusion.

The award organisers said Bennett’s “short but extraordinary career” left a “stunning musical legacy, not only in Scotland, but around the world”.

The Sound of Young Scotland Award – chosen by a panel of 11 former album of the year nominees – went to Dillon Barrie, who received a funding package worth £10,000 to record his debut album.