Freda D’Souza
Windowledge
Demo Records/Crossness Records
28 June 2023
Windowledge, the title track of Freda D’Souza’s debut EP, was written when the London-based songwriter was still a teenager, but there is nothing hesitant or unformed. The clear, enunciated vocal style is offset by washes of strings and flutters of piano, while the melody weaves in and out, implying an underlying structure without ever being constricted by one. The sound of rainfall bookends the song, but it’s more than just a signifier, a way of telling the listener how they should be feeling. It creates a very specific kind of space, one that allows the words and music to explore with quiet determination both a set of emotions and a sonic landscape: we are instantly aware of D’Souza’s wide range of musical influences and her precocious skill as a songwriter, though the way we receive this information is so subtle that we hardly notice it’s happening.
Amazingly, the rest of the EP is just as good or even better. Opener Julian tiptoes in on atmospheric guitars, and the breathiest, most confessional of vocals before some perfectly judged multitracking gives the song an experimental richness. The ripple and hush of Inconsistency is an object lesson in building a satisfying melody from apparently disparate parts. The skeletons of these songs recall Vashti Bunyan or Linda Perhacs, but they are animated by the spirit of the avant-garde.
Closer, He Is My Peace, provides a moment of acceptance, of sheer openness, as D’Souza repeats the word ‘everything’ for half of the song’s duration, her voice multiplying and rising in what feels like a negation of the self, an almost religious experience. Best of all is The Love Song Of J Alfreda D’Souza, a meandering creation myth and personal manifesto sprinkled with quotes from T.S. Eliot’s Prufrock. It’s vastly ambitious, but that ambition never supersedes the atmosphere of the here and now. It’s all anchored by her voice, precise and powerful, and the delicate pastel tones of her playing.
The fact that D’Souza bagged a support slot with Mount Eerie earlier this month is pertinent: these songs, like those of Phil Elverum, whisper fiercely. They speak in the complex language of human emotion but with a candidness that makes them immediately accessible. She is particularly good on the links between romantic love and anxiety, and her songs have a self-deprecating streak that cuts through the bleakest moments with humour and freshness. Windowledge is one of the most accomplished debuts of recent times: not just full of promise but perfectly formed in its own right.
Tour dates:
2nd July – Green Note, London (EP launch) – tickets
7th July – Platform, Glasgow (with L.T. Leif and Housekind) – tickets
9th July – The Engine Room, North Shields
Further dates to be announced