McLean by Peri Urban

This album was recorded and produced between October 2012 and June 2014 in East Lothian and Edinburgh by Peri Urban.

John McLean was a Scottish socialist who was imprisoned in 1918 for speaking out against the British state and its involvement in the Great War. He went on hunger strike and was force fed, an action that his then wife described as "slow murder".

McLean was 39 years old when he was incarcerated in Peterhead prison. He died at the age of 44, his health having been severely compromised by his prison time. His funeral was the largest ever seen in Glasgow.

McLean was a staunch supporter of Scottish Independence in the context of the larger international socialist movement. His story is not taught in Scottish schools, and today most Scots do not know who he was, what he stood for or what he fought for.

(I Don't Want Your) War Machine http://youtu.be/psLbhb7I5nI - WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGERY

Like all musicians I wished I had the same number of limbs as an octopus. My wish was granted, but not in the way I had hoped for. My cephalopod partner is an enthusiastic volunteer from the worldwide animal charity Save Humans From Themselves. We share a special kind of love.