I am from a small town off the Antrim coast called Larne. A rather ridiculed place, often derided for not having much there and the best thing being the “road out of it.” However, I think there’s as much as you could ask for in a small town – McDonald’s, KFC, Asda (Walmart in America), a cinema and the beautiful Coast Road drive. Moreover, there’s a record shop – Number One Records.

A great record shop with good variety and prices, helmed by the legend that is John. Always up for a hilarious chat, he certainly has an eclectic taste. Ranging from James Brown to AC/DC to obscure female blues singers.

One of his interesting favourites is Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald. After seeing Biffy Clyro at Kendal Calling Festival, who sing with a thick Scottish accent, I was intrigued to see if I could find other artists that sing with this distinctive accent.

There are obvious picks like The Proclaimers and Gerry Cinnamon, but I do find their accents a bit distracting from the music, and am not particularly fussed on them. I did find that Amy’s accent really enhances her music.

Her music is quite different than what you would initially think, I believe. She is widely known for the song “This Is The Life” which is still absolutely ubiquitous. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a bar where it hasn’t been played or a busker hasn’t sung it. In the excellent Harbour Bar in Portrush recently the busker was singing it, mixed in with majority contemporary music like Zach Bryan. Even though it’s from 2007, it is absolutely a staple song that gets crowds of all ages going.

I do think it’s a good song, but the first album it’s from isn’t as enjoyable as her later work to me! That song and album have a very folky singer-songwriter feel, which I believe Amy is commonly seen as. I was surprised to find that the bulk of her later music sounds like Bruce Springsteen and The Killers type heartland/pop/indie rock. ’80s influenced with big synths and reverb-drenched electric guitars.

Her last album, 2025’s Is This What You’ve Been Waiting For?, is a particularly good example, produced by Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian producer Jim Abbiss. Songs like “Forward” and the title track are exactly that sound I love. It is a very consistent album, every song being toe-tapping and anthemic. It also features some folky “This Is The Life” style songs too which is nice. That’s why I love her natural Scottish accent – it has a folky, rustic feel that adds to the authenticity of the organic music. She makes the accent commonly associated with phrases like “give me the buckfast mate” sound warm and lovely!

*Macdonald is also a big petrolhead, professing her love on Top Gear!

So even though there are a lot of great Scottish artists, most of the ones who sing with the natural Scottish accent don’t really work for me. However, Macdonald’s accent really works with the rootsy music. An accent pretty similar to the Larne accent – if I sung Biffy Clyro in my own accent it would sound pretty much the same. So much so that my friend Lorcan, who I’ve mentioned a few times on the page, said he thought I was Scottish when he first met me!

Finally, an article about Scotland wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the new internet sensation, Tony. His surreal TikTok comedy skits and character “Cheesy Michael” are just fascinating.

Here’s to Larne and Scotland.