I started listening to Erika M. Anderson's first solo album Past Life Martyred Saints (2011) last night, its depressing, but in a very beautiful way, roughly in the same way that Grandaddy's "Everything Beautiful is Far Away" is sad yet beautiful. EMA's lyrics don't always make sense, it seems like something stuck between poetry and stream of consciousness, but there is meaning there if you look for it. It must really be tough for a 6 foot tall blonde woman from South Dakota, who may or may not be sure of her sexuality. Her sound is what is really interesting, it kinda sounds like Sleighbells took too many downers and is still trying to perform, I guess this can be attributed to the low quality of the recording equipment they used. I'm sure a lot of people will just think its noise, but its intentionally crafted to evoke a strong inner feeling, and it really gives her vocals a lot more power than if she just sang over a guitar and drums. Its really hard to hear her words sometimes so it helps to read them as you listen. Be warned! You might be even more confused or depressed if you do that.
While I think EMA is really cool, listening to her live in the middle of the day at Coachella does not seem the best setting. She will be playing at Rickshaw Stop on March 1st, and I think I might check her out there.
The standout track of Past Life Martyred Saints is "The Grey Ship":
EMA - End Of Year Bundle by souterraintransmissions
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