Jennifer Walton's First Record "Daughters" Delves Into Grief and Elegance

In this song "Miss America", listeners are placed inside a hotel room close to JFK airfield, where Jennifer Walton learns the devastating update of her father's illness diagnosis. The Sunderland-born performer had been traveling the US for the first time, drumming alongside group Kero Kero Bonito, and abruptly grief takes over, coloring everything with melancholy. Unsteady piano and soft orchestration accompany dark dispatches emanating from the road: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Shopping centers, illicit trades, anxious moments."

Her soft singing come across with a flat manner, yet the album's intensity arises from the keen writing—mixing stories, folksy sayings, and direct diary entries—along with surprising maximalism. Not many songs this year possess stronger novelistic style than "Shelly", a piece that depicts the death of an animal and descends toward a petrol-laden reckoning, evoking written works lit by glimpses of distorted strings. Tense, quiet verses with resonating, plucked guitar transition to grand choruses, and Walton's voice electronically altered to become a presence omniscient and menacing.

Listeners may already know Walton from her work as an electronic producer, DJ, and contributor to bands such as Caroline. Daughters' sonic turns reflect her diverse background. The first track "Sometimes" erupts in fanfare, as if a string band caught by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" radically ups the BPM with an intense, beautiful, looping percussion. Dense layers of audio, skillfully mixed with a long-term partner, seem both gnarly and ethereal, and her dark, enchanted thoughts peak on standout "Lambs", a song that momentarily transforms into a swirling jig. "May your life never end in death," she bargains, with heart-aching gallows humor.

Paul Liu
Paul Liu

A passionate fiber artist and educator sharing her love for spinning and sustainable crafting practices.

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