After the excellent partnership on 2019’s I Need Sound, American-born London-resident musician ERIN K has continued her work with co-producer Kristofer Harris (Belle & Sebastian, Ghostpoet) and recorded new album Sink to Swim at his Squarehead Studios in Kent.
Erin’s narrative-driven songs are as frank and intimate as they are fascinating, and the candid quality of her often fearlessly self-deprecating lyrics makes repeat listens worthwhile.
None more so than Keep Her. “This song illustrates the circumstances of a girl who is bound to her relationship with a controlling partner”, Erin suggests.
“It is written almost in the form of an encouraging letter to the dominant party, offering advice on how to “keep her by [his] side so she can’t let go”. As the verses unfold, the extent to which this girl is broken and bound are poetically revealed.”
This subject matter is intensely personal to Erin who “found myself in similar relationship dynamics in the past. It’s disturbing how reality can be so drastically altered in this way.”
The song evolved considerably from its original form to the final studio recording. “Musically, it was interesting to witness the evolution of this song, originating as something very sombre and heavy. The arrangement is lighter now, serving as a nice contrast to the subject matter”.
The video for Keep Her (shared below) was made in an unconventional way using cutting edge gaming technology. Director Dylan Copeland explains, “Using camera trackers designed for gaming, and a hardware compositor designed for broadcast, we projected Erin and her guitar from our studio in London to a bench in a virtual clearing in a virtual forest in an Unreal Engine”.
Combined with traditional motion graphics, layered animations originating from Erin’s own illustrations and live performance, the result on her video is stunning and engaging, and captures the spirit of her trademark irony, candour, and humour. Tappity ‘n’ forgivingly moderate and offering a skillfully sensitive prognosis (almost predicting the best chances of recovery) this song has serenely confiding tones and patient and amiable sentimentality. The voice is lush and pure.
Grab the listens here: https://listen.link/keepher
RAW RAMP 