North London-based trio Daughter has recently released a new stark video for the poignant and beautiful track, "Youth," a track off of their 2012 EP "The Wild Youth," one of the strongest self-releases I have heard, as well as recent debut album, "If You Leave," which is out now via Glassnote. Calling to mind a stripped down Bat For Lashes with a forlorn Florence Welch-esq vocal, the four mid to slow tempo tracks on "The Wild Youth" are brooding and beautiful, yet never boring. Subtle, yet confident in U.K. indie folk rock band's delivery while displaying a knack for smart and incredibly effective arrangements, color me impressed.
To say it's been a busy year for Daughter would be a massive understatement. For those who have been following the development of the solo artist (real name Elena Tonra), who creates gorgeous music that is stuck in limbo between personal singer-songwriter confessions and bombastic swells of slick indie rock, with the focus very much settled on the delicate intricacies of Tonra's vocals and the sweet simplicity of the accompanying acoustic guitar. Her latest collection of songs build upon the ambient ideas first explored in short bursts on the mostly acoustic tracks on previous release "His Young Heart," which dedicated an entire track to lengthy synth chords and layered vocal sounds.
As a track itself, "Youth" is a somber and simple ballad about lost love. For the bombastic drums in the final moments of "Youth," Tonra has decided to express aggressive ideas in swathes of production techniques, the acoustic ideas swapped for clean electric guitars and synths that reverberate so heavily one could be forgiven for getting lost in them in the dark. Tonra's voice softly and surreptitiously shoots bullets like "And if you're in love, then you are the lucky one... 'cause most of us are bitter over someone," and the verses are colored in nuances of nostalgia, regret, accusation, anger and love! In my view, a perfect blend to illustrate the title.
The black-and-white video is extremely simple and effective and it adopts a minimalist approach, allowing the song to speak for itself. Tonra and her bandmates: Igor Haefeli and Remi Aguilella stand fixated to their designated spots, on an entirely darkened stage-save for three spotlights-and allowing themselves only enough movement to successfully play their instruments. It's moody and straightforward, just like the song. "Youth" is a wistful, heavy-hearted track, but there's still an underlying melancholy, and the combination synchs up for a simple yet effective end result. Tonra's voice is so mesmerizing that a simple video is all the band really needs, and it is rather fantastic.
To say it's been a busy year for Daughter would be a massive understatement. For those who have been following the development of the solo artist (real name Elena Tonra), who creates gorgeous music that is stuck in limbo between personal singer-songwriter confessions and bombastic swells of slick indie rock, with the focus very much settled on the delicate intricacies of Tonra's vocals and the sweet simplicity of the accompanying acoustic guitar. Her latest collection of songs build upon the ambient ideas first explored in short bursts on the mostly acoustic tracks on previous release "His Young Heart," which dedicated an entire track to lengthy synth chords and layered vocal sounds.
As a track itself, "Youth" is a somber and simple ballad about lost love. For the bombastic drums in the final moments of "Youth," Tonra has decided to express aggressive ideas in swathes of production techniques, the acoustic ideas swapped for clean electric guitars and synths that reverberate so heavily one could be forgiven for getting lost in them in the dark. Tonra's voice softly and surreptitiously shoots bullets like "And if you're in love, then you are the lucky one... 'cause most of us are bitter over someone," and the verses are colored in nuances of nostalgia, regret, accusation, anger and love! In my view, a perfect blend to illustrate the title.
The black-and-white video is extremely simple and effective and it adopts a minimalist approach, allowing the song to speak for itself. Tonra and her bandmates: Igor Haefeli and Remi Aguilella stand fixated to their designated spots, on an entirely darkened stage-save for three spotlights-and allowing themselves only enough movement to successfully play their instruments. It's moody and straightforward, just like the song. "Youth" is a wistful, heavy-hearted track, but there's still an underlying melancholy, and the combination synchs up for a simple yet effective end result. Tonra's voice is so mesmerizing that a simple video is all the band really needs, and it is rather fantastic.
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