I’ll be the first one to admit that I’m not always the best with subtlety when it comes to music, my relative brief attention span reacts to bursts of sound and I can usually tell whether I’m going to like a song in the first few seconds so I need it to be gripping…but it’s also fair to say that I know and appreciate that music can strike hard with the softest approach and today’s song demonstrates that perfectly!
Last month I featured a new (debut) song by the emerging folk-rock duo, Emilie Rex and Rick Alverson, aka Lean Year. Hailing from Richmond, Virginia and inspired by artists and bands such as Karen Dalton, Fred Neil, Brian Eno, Nina Simone, Bessie Smith, Love, and Elizabeth Cotton, the pair introduced themselves with their aptly titled and rather striking first track, Come and See (check this out here).
Lean Year’s eponymous debut album, which was co-written over the course of a year at their home studio, is due for release next month and ahead of this the pair have released another new song titled, Watch Me. Minimalist in structure, yet abundant in its haunting style, sparse vocals envelope with the enticing ominous lyrics, If you wanna know just how to catch me, you better watch me, you better watch me. Subtle and understated, but delivered with crisp directness, so much is said with so little and the soft whisper which doubles up for the lines, better watch me towards the end of the song only adds to the already atmospheric textures. Instrumentally the hypnotic melody of a guitar, intermittent bass-plucks and sprawl of soft drawn-out strings provides a bewitching backdrop to what is a wonderfully written song! Check it out above.
Lean Year’s self titled debut will be released this October via Western Vinyl. Pre-order it here.
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