Siobhan McCrudden – Icarus Girl
Hunger Sleep Records – 7 December 2018
Early reaction to ‘Icarus Girl’ seems to mention the name Joni Mitchell rather a lot. Not an unreasonable reference point by any stretch, as the album gently eases in with ‘Cassiopeia’s Chair’ the delicately picked notes of Siobhan’s acoustic guitar, that beautiful high register voice and the icicle drops of a dreamy auto harp do indeed take you back to somewhere Joni might have felt at home. Echoes of that classic ‘Blue’ album ring out loud. This is music that seems to emanate from a wintery log-cabin environment, a frosty lake visible outside the window and an open fire warming your insides. It’s a lovely sound and it’s a setting that’s in many ways textbook sensitive singer-songwriter. The Joni Mitchell comparison is wholly appropriate, but it’s also completely misleading.
If you’re going to be influenced by anyone there’s nothing wrong with being influenced by the best. Siobhan McCrudden has probably drunk from the well of esteemed late 60s, early 70s composer, performers for sure. She may well have a love for music of that time but if any writer is going to resonate with an audience, they must have a voice of their own, their music has to come from the heart to really cut through. McCrudden’s does just that, she is no mere copyist. Some artists are so attentive to the source of their inspiration that they end up utterly bereft of their own identity. There is one particular US songwriter I heard recently (sorry I won’t name names) who is so devoted to the work of Elliott Smith that she might as well start wearing a Beatle-wig, change her name to Angeles and go touting for work on the tribute act circuit. This new artist, however, whilst possibly still playing around with her sounds and wearing her influences on the outside, is doing so on the back of a fine set of songs and an assuredness to her delivery. Any comparisons to ladies of the canyon should be taken on a “if you like this then you may also like this” level and nothing more.
Siobhan is a new young songsmith who cut her teeth on the coffee house circuit of New York. She is currently based in Cardiff although her parents had Scottish and Irish roots while she herself was raised in London. All of these elements seep through in the music. There’s both a misty mountain chill, so evocative of the open landscapes of Scotland, in tandem with sweet Irish melodicism too. Stir this up with the assuredness that can only come from the sharp-edged New York streets and you have yourself an artist to watch in 2019. McCrudden has already risen from those low-key beginnings to the festival stages and folk clubs. Attention and plaudits have come from BBC Radio Wales as well as the national 6 Music station who once included debut single ‘The Mermaid In Your Glass’ (which also features on this set) in their ‘Top 10 Fresh Favs’ last year.
It’s in the choice of artrock musician GRICE that the real pointers to Siobhan’s strong future lie. He has laid out a large and open musical palette for the artist to work with. It allows these songs to find their feet naturally and settle in an appropriate environment. So, while the opening track chimes with sounds of the Woodstock era, second track ‘Following You’ blows in like a piercing light breeze from the Irish sea. It possesses a memorable hook that will sit in your head for days, repeating itself with a relentlessness that reveals a pop sensibility Siobhan should absolutely not suppress. If this track could be compared to anyone, I’d plump for Clannad in their imperial 1980s phase. The layered voices and overlapping lines are a tonic for the ear.
And so, this brief but enticing nine track calling card of an album continues. A strong set of songs in which this new artist, alive with fresh ideas, doesn’t stand still. The album possesses an overall unity of tone, but each track pushes a subtly different button. ‘Oh Little Red’ bleeds with tension and the wonderfully arranged strings push and pull every last drop of feeling out of the piece. Then ‘The Forest’ swoops down, all brightly strummed strings and birdsong gymnastics as it wraps the listener in a bittersweet goo. It demonstrates indisputably that Siobhan McCrudden is prepared to serve her music with the integrity of a serious artist. Like Icarus she may be so focused and single-minded that she one day flies too close to the sun but, should that happen, some incredible music might well come out of that excursion. Keep an eye on her journey, this singer songwriter has real potential.
Order Icarus Girl via Bandcamp here.
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