Victoria Blade - Lo-fi Love Songs (2019)

 

GENRE : indie folk, folk pop, lo-fi pop, bedroom pop

RECORD LABEL : Already Dead Tapes & Records

This is the debut album from singer-songwriter Victoria Blade. It's exactly as the title suggests - an album of lo-fi love songs. Recorded onto a 4-track Tascam, these simple dreamy folk songs are wonderfully hissy and bare. They address and express the deep love and affection one feels towards a significant other, and documents the places they've been and the time that they've shared together... but the songs also address and express the internal struggles that occur during major life changing events.

This album makes me yearn for summer. They make me wish I was sitting on a warm sunny beach, without any responsibilities or commitments... just watching the water sparkle and shimmer away, birds cawing and swooping...

Instead I'm sitting in front of my computer in a cold room with several layers of clothing on, listening to this album while trying to ignore the howling gale outside that's rattling my window pane. 

Oh yeah, Victoria Blade is also an actress, most notable as the commercial woman on the Emmy-award winning series Wandavision.

Stream/Download the album here...

https://alreadydeadtapes.bandcamp.com/album/lo-fi-love-songs

Amiga Herz - Adapting To Blurriness (2021)

 

GENRE : indie folk, bedroom pop, emo, alternative folk, acoustic, Germany

RECORD LABEL : Z Tapes

I was having a sad Sunday morning, casually browsing through the Z Tapes Bandcamp page, not knowing who or what I was going to click on. For some reason the artwork and the title of this particular release drew me in...

It's the second album by German singer-songwriter, Amiga Herz. Listening to it from start to finish, I was taken on a quiet introspective journey through a blurry landscape. Entering it alone, and emerging from it alone. It was a sad but gorgeous listening experience. Acoustic emo at its finest.

If you like this album, you should definitely look into the Z Tapes Bandcamp page. You won't regret it.

Stream/Download the album here :

https://amigaherz.bandcamp.com/album/adapting-to-blurriness

Z Tapes :

https://ztapes.bandcamp.com/

Renée Reed - J’ai rêvé EP (2021)

 

GENRE : dream folk, indie folk, dream pop, Cajun, singer-songwriter, acoustic

RECORD LABEL : Keeled Scales

Straight from the prairies, this is a wonderful little fantasy folk EP by Cajun songwriter Renée Reed. It consists of two English language originals and two French cover songs. Instantly her voice reminds me of Hope Sandoval (one of my all-time favourite singers) and 60's French pop extraordinaire Francoise Hardy. These 4 songs are languid and dreamy. It brings to mind hazy summer fields and sweet birdsong, daydreaming amongst the flowers.

After writing this I realized that this EP is actually an accompaniment to her self-titled debut album, which I haven't listened to yet. I was tempted to scrap this write-up and review her full-length album instead, but then I figured that this EP could use some love as a stand-alone release. Why not? I love EPs, and you should definitely give this one a spin. Or at least a good old click.  

Stream/Download the EP here :

https://reneereed.bandcamp.com/album/j-ai-r-v

Scott Orr - Worried Mind (2018)

GENRE : alternative folk, electronica, soul, dream pop, ambient,

RECORD LABEL : Other Songs

Scott Orr is a songwriter, musician and podcaster from Ontario, Canada. He is also the founder/owner of Other Songs record label. 'Worried Mind' isn't his latest release, but it's the release I wanted to plug and promote on this particular occasion. It's a wonderful album. The central focus of the songs are his beautiful hushed vocals and delicate acoustic guitar picking...surrounded by shimmering ambience, glistening synthesizers, simple programmed beats, tinkly piano notes, glitchy electronics and dreamy backing vocals. A truly relaxing listening experience during these difficult times. Fans of Bon Iver and Radiohead will very likely dig this album.

Also check out his cool little record label Other Songs and his wonderful podcast Other Record Labels, available to listen to on Spotify.

Stream/Download the album here :

https://othersongs.bandcamp.com/album/worried-mind

Other Songs :

http://www.othersongsmusic.com/

Charlotte Carpenter - Blood Ties pt.2 (2018)

 

GENRE : alternative rock, alternative folk, singer-songwriter, indie rock, indie folk, alternative folk

RECORD LABEL : Babywoman Records

I first became aware of English songwriter/musician Charlotte Carpenter via the podcast appearance she did on The Subliminally Inevitable Show, where she discussed her record label Babywoman Records and her own personal story as a DIY songwriter, musician, and entrepreneur. I really enjoyed listening to what she had to say. She seemed like a cool, sweet, fiercely independent woman that's wise beyond her years, and works really damn hard to carve out her own little niche in the big bad world of music. I knew I had to check her music out, and her record label.

Her songs generally tend to fluctuate between raw powerful alt-rock and delicate acoustic indie folk. Regardless of what musical direction she chooses to explore, she always packs a hard punch.  

'Blood Ties pt.2' isn't one of her newer singles, but who cares. It's an unsettling yet beautiful reflection on the nature of loss and grief, and how these terrible but inevitable human experiences affect relationships.

Charlotte is currently working on her debut full-length album, which I'm looking forward to hearing.

Stream/Download here :

https://charlottecarpentermusic.bandcamp.com/

Babywoman Records :

https://babywomanrecords.bandcamp.com/