Sing To The Walls
Self-Released, 2022
8/10
Not only did the isolation that came with the pandemic have a profound affect on Chastity Brown, but she resides right at the epicenter of the post-George Floyd problems in Minneapolis. Like any great artist, though, she was able to parlay this trauma into art, and she saw a prolific writing spurt that yielded 100 new songs, 10 of which landed here.
“Wonderment” starts the listen with Brown’s expressive, soulful pipes that take help from Brady Blade’s strategic drumming and Lukas Johansson’s warm synth in the very cozy climate, and “Back Seat” follows with a dreamy approach that benefits from Joacim Otterbjork’s well timed bass and Brown’s spirited electric guitar as an infectious beat guides the bright storytelling.
“Curiosity” and “Golden” occupy the middle spots, where the former recruits elegant piano thanks to Johansson, while the latter has Brown playing Fender Rhodes and handling drum programming on the stylish and cautious album highlight.
Close to the end, the hypnotic “Hope” places Niklas Krantz on electric guitar and Brown on piano for the hazy, stirring delivery, and “Gertrude” exits the listen with Sharon Van Etten’s pipes, James Douglas’ strings and Nathan Night’s upright bass complementing Brown’s poetic voice on the very intimate finish.
The album started in Sweden, but was finished up in Brown’s home studio, where her Americana, folk and soul formula is fleshed out with meticulous attention to detail and much care.
Travels well with: Nicki Bluhm- Avondale Drive; Amy Speace- Tucson