The First Album "Daughters" Explores Sorrow and Elegance

In the song "Miss America", audiences find themselves inside a lodging close to JFK airfield, as Jennifer Walton receives a devastating news of her father's illness diagnosis. The UK-raised artist was touring America for the first time, playing alongside indie band Kero Kero Bonito, and abruptly grief takes over, coloring everything in grey. Faltering keys and soft orchestration underscore gothic reports from the road: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."

Her gentle vocals are delivered in a flat manner, while this album's intensity stems from the sharp penmanship—mixing fiction, folksy sayings, and direct diary entries—coupled with surprising rich textures. Few tracks recently possess more potent storytelling style than "Shelly", which depicts the killing of an animal and descends into a petrol-laden reckoning, reminiscent of literary pieces illuminated with glimpses of warped strings. Anxious, subdued sections with resonating, strummed strings transition to expansive choruses, and her vocals electronically altered into a presence omniscient and menacing.

Audiences may previously be familiar with the artist as an electronic producer, DJ, and member in groups such as Caroline. The album's musical twists draw on her varied background. The first track "Sometimes" bursts with fanfare, like a string band taken unawares, whereas "Born Again Backwards" radically ups the tempo with a punishing, stunning, repeating percussion. Thick walls of sound, expertly mixed with a long-term collaborator, seem at once rough and spiritual, and her morbid, enchanted thinking peak on standout "Lambs", which briefly transforms into a twirling jig. "May your life never end in death," she bargains, exuding poignant dark comedy.