The First Record "Daughters" Delves Into Sorrow and Elegance
In the song "Miss America", audiences are placed inside a lodging close to JFK airport, where the musician receives a devastating news that her dad has cancer diagnosis. The UK-raised performer was traveling America for the first time, playing alongside group Kero Kero Bonito, and abruptly sadness takes over, tinging everything in grey. Faltering piano and soft orchestration underscore gothic dispatches emanating from the tour van: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her gentle singing come across in a deadpan style, while the record's tension arises from the keen writing—mixing stories, folksy sayings, and direct personal notes—along with unexpected rich textures. Not many songs this year possess more potent storytelling flair compared to "Shelly", which describes the killing of an animal and descends toward a petrol-laden confrontation, evoking literary pieces illuminated by flickers of distorted cello. Tense, quiet sections with resonating, plucked strings transition to expansive choruses, and Walton's voice digitally manipulated to become a presence all-knowing and sinister.
Listeners may already be familiar with Walton as a music creator, disc jockey, and contributor to bands like Caroline. The album's musical twists reflect her diverse background. The opener "Sometimes" bursts in fanfare, like a string band caught by surprise, whereas "Born Again Backwards" radically increases the BPM with an intense, beautiful, repeating drum fill. Thick layers of audio, skillfully produced by a long-term partner, seem both rough and ethereal, and her dark, magical thoughts peak in highlight "Lambs", a song that briefly becomes a swirling jig. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," she bargains, with heart-aching gallows humor.
