Album Review: Billie Marten – Dog Eared
2 min read
UK songwriter Billie Marten has had a consistency superior to many of her genre counterparts. Taking off at the age of fifteen, she was nominated for BBC’s Sound of 2016 award and has since released five albums, all of which have been critically acclaimed and adored by fans. Her latest released Dog Eared is another of those that has won the hearts of listeners and critics alike.
Opener and first single Feeling kicks of with jagged guitars and a lilting slide, Billie’s voice fully of residence and rich in tone despite being at her usual soft level. The track is captivating, taking listeners out only towards the end when the time signature shifts into a 5/4 rhythm. It’s the perfect representation of the album to come, familiar but with dashes of alternative thinking when it comes to the sounds and arrangements. Crown follows, its hypnotic drum machine pattern drawing listeners in while the guitars loop and backing vocals ebb and flow. Clover has a slight dissonance in the melody and guitars that maintains a balance between strange and pretty, while No Sudden Changes comes in as a throwback soul-tinged waltz with the exception of highly distorted organ fills, before releasing into a stomping chorus and contemplative ending.
Leap Year is a mid-album highlight, building on a bed of keys and guitars to a low-key solo that lasts half the length of the song, before fading out slowly. It leads wonderfully into Goodnight Moon, a song that follows a similar pattern but with hints of sax and accentuated piano motifs towards the end. The album concludes on the country-esc You And I Both and the fiddle led folk banger Swing. The former swings along, Billie harmonising with herself beautifully before a distorted guitar solo interrupts the calm and takes the song into a whole new direction. The latter’s driving beat and hand-clapping, singalong post chorus end things on an energetic and relatively brief note.
Dog Eared is a brilliant addition to Billie’s growing catalogue. Familiar to her previous work sonically, the experimentation with sounds and effects elevate this release beyond her previous records and show an artist who is still willing to push the boundaries of their sound. Whether a fan, or just curious, Billie’s fifth release is arguably one of her strongest.
Writer and Musician, Ryan Bulbeck has been published with a number of online publications, and has worked with a myriad of great artists, both as a performer, and as a producer. His most recent band The 295 are still active, playing shows around the UK.
