Jennifer Walton's First Album "Daughters" Delves Into Grief and Elegance
Within this track "Miss America", listeners find themselves in a hotel room close to JFK airport, where Jennifer Walton receives the heartbreaking update that her dad has illness diagnosis. This Sunderland-born artist was touring the US on her initial visit, drumming with group Kero Kero Bonito, and suddenly sadness casts a shadow, coloring everything with melancholy. Faltering piano and hushed orchestration accompany gothic dispatches emanating from the road: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her soft vocals are delivered in a deadpan style, while the album's tension stems from the sharp writing—mixing fiction, folksy sayings, and blunt diary entries—coupled with unexpected maximalism. Not many tracks recently showcase stronger novelistic flair than "Shelly", which describes the killing of a deer and descends toward a petrol-laden reckoning, reminiscent of literary pieces lit with glimpses of distorted cello. Anxious, subdued verses with echoing, plucked strings transition into grand refrains, and her voice electronically altered to become something omniscient and menacing.
Audiences may previously be familiar with the artist as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and member in groups such as Caroline. Daughters' musical twists reflect this diverse background. The first track "Sometimes" bursts in flourish, as if an ensemble caught by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" drastically ups the BPM via a punishing, beautiful, repeating drum fill. Thick layers of audio, skillfully mixed by a longtime partner, feel at once rough and spiritual, and Walton's morbid, magical thoughts peak on standout "Lambs", a song that briefly becomes a swirling dance. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," Walton bargains, with poignant dark comedy.
