The First Album "Daughters" Delves Into Sorrow and Elegance
In the track "Miss America", listeners find themselves inside a lodging close to JFK airfield, as Jennifer Walton receives the heartbreaking news that her dad has illness discovery. The Sunderland-born performer had been touring America on her initial visit, playing alongside indie band Kero Kero Bonito, and abruptly grief casts a shadow, coloring all in grey. Faltering keys and soft orchestration accompany gothic dispatches from the road: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her gentle singing are delivered with a deadpan manner, while this album's intensity stems from the sharp writing—blending fiction, folksy sayings, and direct personal notes—along with surprising rich textures. Few songs this year showcase stronger novelistic style than "Shelly", which depicts the killing of an animal and descends toward a petrol-laden reckoning, reminiscent of literary works illuminated with glimpses of warped cello. Anxious, quiet sections with echoing, plucked guitar transition to grand refrains, with her voice electronically altered into a presence all-knowing and sinister.
Listeners may already know Walton as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and contributor to bands such as Caroline. Daughters' musical twists draw on this diverse career. The first track "Sometimes" erupts with fanfare, as if an ensemble taken unawares, while "Born Again Backwards" drastically increases the BPM with an intense, stunning, repeating percussion. Dense layers of audio, skillfully mixed with a longtime collaborator, feel at once rough and spiritual, and Walton's morbid, enchanted thinking culminate on standout "Lambs", a song that briefly transforms into a twirling jig. "May your life never end in death," Walton bargains, with poignant gallows humor.
