What You Missed in March
BY İDİL DAMLA BİNGÖL (IE/IV)
This week, because of the excessive number of exams, instead of writing a single detailed review I'm writing brief reviews of three albums released in March.
Laura Mvula - Sing to the Moon:
The first is Laura Mvula's "Sing to the Moon," which I mentioned in my BBC Sound of 2013 article. Mvula is a 25-year-old artist from Birmingham, England. She was nominated for Critics' Choice Award at this year's Brit Awards but lost to Tom Odell. Recently, she has been advertised as the next Amy Winehouse. I'm not sure that's true, but she has a powerful voice and is a talented soul singer -- that's a fact. "Sing to the Moon" is a successful and balanced album; all of the songs on it are above average, I think. "Green Garden" and "Sing to the Moon" are my favorites and, in my opinion, musically the most powerful songs on the album; or let me put it this way -- those are the two that I liked the most. Whether you're looking for the next Amy Winehouse or just trying to find something different, this album may be the answer.
Rilo Kiley - Rkives:
Rilo Kiley, an indie rock/pop band from Los Angeles, disbanded in 2011. "Rkives" (as you can guess, "archives") is a collection album consisting of some of their previously released rarities as well as unreleased material. Rilo Kiley is a very meaningful band for me, as their songs were soundtracks for a lot of my memories. This album includes songs from their debut album and first EPs, which I was too young to understand or appreciate at the time. This is an opportunity for both fans and people who haven't even heard the name before, because although "Rkives" doesn't offer anything new, that doesn't mean it's not good. With sweet vocals by Jenny Lewis (and sometimes Blake Sennett) and everything else, you feel as if they had never disbanded and all those years had never passed. For those new to their music, my suggestions are "Let Me Back In," "Patiently" and "It'll Get You There."
Daughter - If You Leave:
Daughter is a London-based indie folk band. They released two EPs in 2010 and 2011, "His Young Heart" and "The Wild Youth." Their songs have been featured in some very popular TV series -- to be precise, "Grey's Anatomy," "The Vampire Diaries" and "Skins" -- as well as some commercials. Their debut album, "If You Leave," was released in March by 4AD. The album has a beautiful balance of unhappiness and fragility, voiced impressively by Elena Tonra. The sadness is usually the result of love and its aftermath, and the fragility comes from the melodies and Tonra's vocals. Christian Cottingham from Line of the Best Fit refers to Daughter as The Ring of breakups: "Just one listen and Tonra comes crawling from the well in your direction, broken dreams and anti-depressants falling in her wake." In my view, Daughter is the child of The xx and Cassie, with music resembling that of both. The album should be listened to alone (or after a breakup, as most blogs say), on a rainy day -- the resulting depression is unavoidable. If you don't believe me, here's an example from "Youth": "I've lost it all, I'm just a silhouette / I'm a lifeless face that you'll soon forget." But putting aside all the jokes about how Daughter's music and depression go together, this album is inspirational: bright and dark at the same time. As you can guess, it's my favorite among these three albums. My song suggestions are: "Youth" and "Smother."
This Week's Mini-List:
1. Hudson Mohawke - Pleasure
2. ViLL GE - Love on the Line
3. Charli XCX - You Mu Ha Ha Ho (Lindstrøm Remix)
4. Valentina - Ladders
5. The Knock (ft. St. Lucia) - Modern Hearts