EP: The Nightingale EP
Posted on December 9th, 2011 by Scott
UK Release Date: 12th December 2011
Label: Turf Records
When Bella Union boss Simon Raymonde hails you as an “outstanding talent with a voice sent from above” you can be fairly certain you’ve made that leap from the quirky kid with lots of plays on Soundcloud and YouTube into something a little more special.
London’s Laura Boyle is such a talent and at the tender age of seventeen looks set to dominate far beyond the reaches of the traditional city-based singer songwriter. Her bedroom demos uploaded only a few months ago have already grown her an eager fan-base and grabbed the attention of several labels including Turf Records who’ve put out this four track showcase of beautiful folk pop tunes.
Evoking the delicate vocals of Vashti Bunyan and harking back to the song writing of Jackson C. Frank, her songs marry beautiful melodies with thoughtful, wise beyond her years, lyrics. – Turf Records
Laura Boyle writes about what she knows. There are no lofty aspirations or over-wordy nonsense to wade through. The Nightingale EP is an honest straightforward record dealing with all the quirks and foibles of being a teenage girl… though not many teenage girls are blessed with this sort of talent.
Track by Track
By The Shore – The EP opens with some delicate finger-picking that is almost reminiscent of the earlier work of Laura Marling. There’s an age old analogy of water washing away the sins but it’s less baptism of fire and hopefully the rebirth of an almost overlooked genre.
Way Of The Sun – We find the tempo upped a little as Way of the Sun dabbles further with religious imagery and wordplay. Proficient on several instruments, Laura keeps the arrangements simple on these tunes while the lyrical content belies her young age.
Mitchelstown – There’s something immediately beautiful in the Celtic breathy sentiment of a hometown ballad. There’s an ending warm coda of layered harmonies as Boyle sings “we break, we mend and we do it all again. What’s the point if we’re going to fall?”
Wish You Well – This is a melancholy farewell and a touching sign-off to the EP as Laura again shows a maturity beyond her years. Miss Marling troubled the charts and listenership of Radio One and in this young songstress we have found a new contender to step up.
The Nightingale EP will be available from 12th December from lauraboyle.com and each release will be accompanied by a stunning set of postcards providing an artistic backdrop to every track.