Speedwell is Dermaptera’s sixth CD, recorded in 2010. The album was recorded using some improvisational techniques, as well as some overdubbing of tracks in order to create a synthesis of impulsive creativity and deliberate sound building. Our main mental picture for Speedwell was lying in a grassy meadow on a fine day, looking up at the sky and listening to the insects and other life all around. As a result, the album that we created feels dreamy, spacious, and contemplative. Kathy McMenamin and Kevin Hassett are Dermaptera. A husband and wife duo, we have been making music together since the turn of the millennium. Kevin has been playing bass since the early eighties, and has perfected his individual style of playing multiple string chords on the bass. His bass style also usually includes multiple effects processors. Kathy plays the synthesizer, and adds signal processed vocals to some songs. Her background includes a decade of training and performing for voice and piano, but she had been away from making music for several years before Kevin convinced her to start up again. Other instruments that have been known to make surprise appearances on Dermaptera albums include mountain dulcimer, autoharp, hand drums, earth plate, and small analog synthesizers and drum machines, so keep your ears open for surprises. Get this album and the spirit world will thank you...