In her newest album, Emma Ruth Rundle utilizes bare spaces to reflect upon personal musings.
Playing upon spare instruments and creating an intimate atmosphere may need work beyond the bare presentation, as it would need more melodic, vocal, and lyrical flexibility to effectively pursue the desired atmosphere. For Emma Ruth Rundle, that’s not much of a worry.
Her latest album plays upon that exact atmosphere. Bare pianos, cellos, and acoustics balanced out with Emma’s hushed and mesmerizing vocal presence, playing out around the themes of personal loneliness and existence that she writes more with shrouded imagery and abstraction. But even with that abstraction, the melodies she makes may as well be familiar, like the melodies of a singer-songwriter in the 60s or the 70s. It’s a strength that allows the tracks to feel varied from one another even when the instrumental melodies on certain tracks repeat a bit too long.
Bare presentation at its finest, Emma makes something shrouded with this record. It’s a mist that puts the listener into a calm and reflecting state, and sometimes, they all need it.
Favorite Tracks: Razor’s Edge, The Company, Return, Citadel, Blooms of Oblivion
Least Favorite Track: Dancing Man