The First Album "Daughters" Delves Into Grief and Style
Within the song "Miss America", listeners find themselves in a lodging near JFK airport, as the musician learns a heartbreaking news that her dad has illness diagnosis. This UK-raised performer was traveling the US for the first time, playing alongside group Kero Kero Bonito, when suddenly grief takes over, tinging everything in grey. Faltering piano and soft strings underscore dark reports from the road: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her gentle singing come across with a deadpan manner, yet this album's intensity arises from her keen writing—blending fiction, traditional phrases, and direct diary entries—along with unexpected maximalism. Few songs recently possess more potent storytelling flair than "Shelly", which describes the killing of a deer and spirals toward a fuel-soaked reckoning, evoking written works illuminated with flickers of warped cello. Tense, quiet verses with resonating, plucked strings move to expansive refrains, with Walton's vocals electronically altered into a presence all-knowing and menacing.
Listeners might already know the artist from her work as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and contributor to bands like Caroline. Daughters' sonic turns draw on this varied career. The opener "Sometimes" bursts with fanfare, as if an ensemble taken by surprise, while "Born Again Backwards" drastically increases the BPM via an intense, beautiful, looping percussion. Dense layers of audio, expertly produced with a long-term partner, seem at once rough and spiritual, while Walton's dark, magical thoughts culminate in standout "Lambs", which briefly transforms into a swirling jig. "May your life never end in death," Walton bargains, with heart-aching dark comedy.
