Poetic reflections on a breakup in the debut from Tallie Gabriel
Tallie Gabriel releases her debut EP and takes inspiration from the end of a relationship - the closest thing she feels to the death of a loved one. The end of a relationship is, of course, a bereavement: the person you love and care for is still alive but you mourn the life you'd hoped for, the things you wanted to do together and simply having them as part of your life. There's also the cheeky pun on the French phrase petit mort, which adds further dynamics to the work.
The 5 track EP is more about creating an artful and thoughtful piece of work than about creating traditional songs, although 'Hummingbird' follows more of that template. Her songs typically use poetry and music to underscore her avant-garde tracks.
'Laundry' adds a mournful vocal on top of equally rueful lyrics about lost love and leaving a relationship behind. While 'Jaqueline' begins with a bold cello - possibly inspired by fellow cellist Jacqueline du Pré - and has its resonating dark tone harmonising with the lightness of the vocal.
Gabriel's American twang gives her voice a lilt of romance and glamour to a style of music typically associated with a crisp English or Irish accent. Despite this, there is still a bitter vulnerability to her music. She recognises the complex emotions of love and loss and the anti-static nature of life and delivers it in a philosophical fusion of poetry and music.
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