Jennifer Walton's First Album "Daughters" Explores Grief and Style

Within the track "Miss America", audiences are placed in a hotel room near JFK airfield, where the musician learns the heartbreaking update of her father's illness discovery. The Sunderland-born artist was traveling the US on her initial visit, playing with indie band Kero Kero Bonito, when abruptly sadness takes over, coloring all in grey. Unsteady keys and soft strings underscore dark reports from the tour van: "Rural scenes and crumbling homes / Strip-mall, drug deal, panic attacks."

Walton's gentle vocals are delivered in a flat style, yet the album's tension arises from the keen penmanship—blending stories, traditional phrases, and blunt personal notes—coupled with unexpected rich textures. Not many songs recently possess more potent novelistic flair compared to "Shelly", which describes the death of an animal and descends toward a fuel-soaked confrontation, evoking literary pieces lit by glimpses of distorted strings. Anxious, quiet sections with resonating, plucked guitar move to grand choruses, and her vocals electronically altered into something all-knowing and menacing.

Audiences might previously know the artist as an electronic producer, DJ, and member in groups such as Caroline. The album's musical twists draw on her diverse career. The first track "Sometimes" erupts in fanfare, like a string band caught unawares, whereas "Born Again Backwards" drastically ups the BPM with a punishing, beautiful, looping percussion. Dense layers of audio, expertly produced by a long-term collaborator, seem at once gnarly and spiritual, while her morbid, magical thoughts peak in standout "Lambs", which momentarily transforms into a twirling jig. "May your life never end in death," she bargains, exuding poignant dark comedy.

Ann Jacobson
Ann Jacobson

A passionate aerospace engineer and writer, sharing expert insights on space advancements and future missions.