The First Album "Daughters" Explores Sorrow and Style
Within the track "Miss America", audiences are placed inside a lodging near JFK airfield, where the musician receives a heartbreaking news of her father's illness diagnosis. This Sunderland-born performer had been traveling America for the first time, playing with indie band Kero Kero Bonito, and suddenly grief casts a shadow, coloring all with melancholy. Unsteady keys and soft orchestration accompany gothic reports emanating from the tour van: "Cattle farm and broke down shack / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."
Her gentle vocals come across in a flat manner, yet the record's tension stems from her keen penmanship—mixing fiction, traditional phrases, and blunt diary entries—coupled with unexpected rich textures. Few tracks this year showcase more potent novelistic flair compared to "Shelly", which depicts the death of a deer and descends toward a petrol-laden confrontation, reminiscent of written works lit by glimpses of warped strings. Tense, quiet sections featuring echoing, strummed guitar transition into grand refrains, and Walton's voice electronically altered into something all-knowing and menacing.
Listeners may previously be familiar with Walton as an electronic producer, disc jockey, and contributor in groups such as Caroline. The album's sonic turns reflect her diverse career. The opener "Sometimes" bursts in fanfare, like a string band caught unawares, while "Born Again Backwards" drastically increases the tempo with a punishing, beautiful, repeating percussion. Thick layers of audio, expertly mixed by a longtime collaborator, seem at once rough and spiritual, and Walton's dark, enchanted thinking culminate in highlight "Lambs", a song that briefly becomes a swirling jig. "I hope your existence doesn't conclude with dying," Walton bargains, with poignant gallows humor.
