Ashley Shadow – Only the End
Felte – 24 September 2021
Ashley Shadow returns to the fray with Only the End, an album two years in the making and five years after the release of her first self-titled long-player. A step forward, the album marks a new influence, hope. While there’s still moody introspection to burn, this new leavening gives the disc a different feel, perhaps not a way out of the morass but an acceptance that things do change.
Working with guitarist and sounding board Ryan Beattie and producer, drummer, keyboard and bass player Joshua Wells, Shadow finds a way to temper the melancholy, “I wanted to make a more upbeat album, something you could play with some friends over. Some of the songs I wrote were initially bummers, but when we went to record them, we lightened them up.” The difference is palpable.
There is a sense of balance that Shadow has had to maintain, working multiple jobs while attempting to maintain her hold on life and love, especially as the times we live in specialize in instability. If there is an answer, it seems to be in resilience, being content to accept what is rather than trying to find a utopian dream. That also seems to be reflected in the music. “For Love” starts simply and gently, singing from self-knowledge, “Deep in your heart is another song/ If you slow it down soon it may be gone/ Stop fighting the people helping you along.”
One of the people helping her along is Bonnie “Prince” Billy, who joins her on “Don’t Slow Me Down.” They each take a verse amidst acoustic and steel guitars (played by Paul Rigby from Neko Case’s band) before joining together to create a sound greater than the sum of its parts. “Uncertain tomorrow would be here at all/ We outran the darkness and shook off the cold/ Taking back feeling from all it controlled.” The voices create a wondrous blend even as the chorus of “Don’t slow me down,” suggests endings.
Despite the downbeat title, “Grey” presents another case for new beginnings. The open is solemn, with Shadow’s vocals wavering a bit. It doesn’t take long for the tone to change slightly. There are glimmers of hope on the horizon. “Turning my life around/ Far too much to think about right now/ Just carry on the way we do/ If I could you’re the reason to.” The electric guitar takes a gently loving solo illustrating how far away from the precipice things are at this point.
While there are bleak moments on Only The End, Ashley Shadow’s voice seems able to transform those moments. She has reached a place of acceptance, where the world is not so overbearing. She is a woman on a journey, and Only the End suggests that the journey will be worth the risks wherever she is headed.
Ashley Shadow features in our Mix KLOF 10. Listen here.
Only The End is out September 24, 2021 (CD/Digital) & October 29, 2021 (Vinyl) via Felte
Order: https://ffm.to/ashley_shadow
Photo Credit: Tyler Mcleod