The dulcet tones of Jamie Doe return this week under his much-loved moniker The Magic Lantern. Taken from his forthcoming album To The Islands (due out later this year), his new single Lydia is the most personal on the album and one which he chose to record in a single take. The intensity of the song and its personal connection to the singer is conveyed vividly and brightly, like the image projector from which he takes his name, it’s also our Song of the Day.
Lydia was written during a tumultuous return to Jamie’s childhood home in Australia. Despite moving to the UK at the age of 12, his years in Australia were musically formative, something he gave us a glimpse into in a short documentary we shared prior to the release of his last album ‘Love Of Too Much Living’ in 2014.
There’s a lovely sentence in the press release which reads: “Influenced by the likes of folk, jazz and contemporary music, Jamie is dedicated to remedying the anxiety and fear present in all of us.” I believe that’s a genuine statement of intent and I’ve no doubt that, having heard Lydia, this new album will live up to expectations. I’m looking forward to hearing more on an album that “explores memory and hope in a world of near-constant uncertainty”. It also promises a new soundscape on which to further express his voice courtesy of a new ensemble he has drawn from London’s thriving jazz scene.
“songs sit astride the fathomless land between maturity and naivety… lyrics describe that land with profound directness.” Thomas Blake FRUK
Lydia is out on 23rd March 2018 via Hectic Eclectic Records.