I had Torres pegged as a Nashville singer-songwriter when she first came around.
Mackenzie Scott has returned with a rougher, tougher edge. The American decamped to Bridport in Dorset, England to record her second album and then to Portishead’s Adrian Utley’s studio and PJ Harvey associated Robert Ellis and Ian Olliver
The PJ Harvey tie-in is a palpable one, with the new album purporting to have a “space-y” feel. It’s certainly intense. It’s out on May 18th on Partisan Records and from the tunes we’ve heard so far, you’ll get a sense of the leap from where she’s come.
The title track ‘Sprinter’ brandishes intensity, ‘Strange Hellos’ tries to be understanding “Heather I’m sorry that your mother / deseased in the brain / cannot recall your name,” Scott sings before losing patience.
‘Cowboy Guilt’ meanwhile, has some of Portishead’s foreboding industrial influence matched with almost whimsical synth lines that soften the blow and actually sounds a lot like one of last year’s big breakouts – St. Vincent.
Torres – ‘Cowboy Guilt’
Torres – ‘Sprinter’
Torres – ‘Strange Hellos
Tracklisting – Sprinter
1. Strange Hellos
2. New Skin
3. Son, You Are No Island
4. A Proper Polish Welcome
5. Sprinter
6. Cowboy Guilt
7. Ferris Wheel
8. The Harshest Light
9. The Exchange
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
