BIRTHH -
Born in the Woods (We Were Never Being Boring)
CD / DL
Out Now
7.5 / 10
Review by Amy Tweddle.
'Born In The Woods' (recorded by Lorenzo Caperchi and Alessandro
at Red Carpet Studios, Italy) is the creation
of 19 year old Alice Bisi also known as BIRTHH and was debuted at SXSW this
year - quite an achievement for a debut album, upon listening however, it makes
sense.
A stormy adolescence re-shaped Alice's song-writing from an
instinctive folk sensibility to something altogether more dynamic - there are nods to St.Vincent, TORRES and The XX
throughout this album. Even with these
apparent similarities this is ultimately a 'pop' album, that said however, it is a
cool, contemporary 'pop' album - an album full of down tempo ambient
atmospheres that contrast with clean fragmented beats.
The album opens with Gospel style harmonies before an
intermittent drum beat interrupts the
smooth piano/vocal intro, towards the end of the track there are some St.
Vincent-esque finger clicks and drum
stick clicks (think the handclaps in Apocalypse Song) which bring an almost
climax to the track. The first thing
that is apparent when listening to this album is how smooth Alice's vocals are,
in fact, this album has a very smooth feel to it - perfect for Sunday morning
listening.
'Interlude for the Lifeless' introduces itself with bubbling water, in fact it's not unlike something
you'd hear on a Zen mood compilation, well maybe, that is until we are told
that 'this is how I wanna die' whilst wispy vocals meander in the background.
The various 'interludes' throughout help to break the album up into
parts, or chapters if you like, giving
it a sense of purpose, a sense of direction and structure, it makes me wish I
had this on vinyl so each 'part/chapter' would be self-contained on each side
of the disc creating little vignettes of ideas and atmosphere.
On the surface this feels
very much like a pop album but if you delve a little below the surface you'll
find darker lyrical themes waiting for you
adding to the contrasting nature of 'Born in the Woods'. This album has already made on to
various 'Best of 2016' lists...it's easy
to hear why.
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