Lucy Kitchen - Sun to My Moon

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 19 / 11 / 2017

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Although certainly not actually sounding dated in any way at all as soon as the first song plays on Lucy Kitchen’s second studio album, the title track, ‘Sun to My Moon’, the listener is transported back in time to when female singers with acoustic guitars who could actually sing and had an identity of their very own were making real in-roads into the singer-songwriter genre. While the music Lucy creates could loosely be labeled folk, the comparisons she has attracted in the past, Sandy Denny, Laura Veirs, Beth Orton and Suzanne Vega, don’t really ring true for this Southampton-based musician. While being a compliment of some worth to be compared to such talent Kitchen does have a distinctive voice of her own, she wrote all of the ten songs featured on ‘Sun to My Moon’ and co-produced the set with the guitarist/bassist/double bassist Tali Trow who has worked with Gemma Hayes and Bonnie Dobson to name just the most obvious when discussing this album; that connection gives a bigger indication of what to expect from this album. The whole album has a natural, pastoral vibe, and Lucy’s voice is crystal clear which recalls a more innocent time passed. ‘Lovers in Blue’, the third song in, opens with weeping pedal steel from Stephen Barlow which lends an obvious country feel to the song which throws the listener off the classic 60's/70's singer-songwriter genre we’d had Lucy labeled with after the first two songs on the album. The reason this song is mentioned first is because, although it would appear that Lucy plays all the acoustic guitar parts and supplies all vocals on the album (and the acoustic guitar playing on the opening and title track is outstanding), it’s the track when it hits home just what a talent this musician is. Lucy goes from standard singer-songwriter fare on the opening song to the jazzy ‘Searching for Land’, showing signs that maybe Joni Mitchell should have been added to that list of comparisons but she’s competing with Trow’s double bass on that song for attention. It’s an outstanding performance and song, polished and accomplished and although it’s eventually one of the songs that you will keep returning to with two changes of styles this early in the album it doesn’t really register just how strong the song is initially. But as soon as Lucy throws in another unexpected move in the countrified third song it becomes obvious that Lucy Kitchen is more than your average guitar-picking singer-songwriter and has the voice of an angel, despite the pedal steel and strings competing to see who can produce the most tears. They both lose out actually to Marie Smith’s cello on the next track, ‘Love And Sorrow’ which finds Lucy back in classic singer=songwriter mode. ‘Hollow’ finds Lucy injecting those jazz elements into the song again; Pat Kenneally in the drummer’s stool on this track is especially impressive. Although at times there’s a stripped-back feel to some of the songs they are not as stark as they initially sound; ‘Anchor’ features pedal steel again and Trow’s bass playing is once again a major feature but the listener is so entranced by Lucy’s vocals that it’s difficult to focus on anything but that sound until you’re a few plays in. Consequently ‘Sun to My Moon’ is one of those albums when you’re constantly discovering something new. Once you get past those beautiful, powerful vocals there’s the fact that Lucy’s acoustic guitar playing is outstanding. Further listens reveal that Trow’s bass is not only fluid but an essential part of the overall sound. Other times Stephens McCleery’s piano all but steals the show (‘Summer Queen’) and then there are the tracks and occasions when the pedal steel, cello or strings take centre stage. ‘Sun to My Moon’ is going to reveal more with each listen and will, therefore, be one of those albums that you’ll want to return to time and again when you need to listen to something that has a little more substance and depth than the few female singer-songwriters that you might hear on the radio these days. Stunning album artwork too…

Track Listing:-

1 Sun to My Moon
2 Searching for Land
3 Lovers in Blue
4 Love and Sorrow
5 Hollow
6 Anchor
7 Summer Queen
8 He Is Lost to Me
9 Little Love
10 Charis

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/LucyKitchenMusic
https://twitter.com/LucyKitchen78
https://www.songkick.com/artists/1976074-lucy-kitchen
http://lucykitchen.com/

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