A quick heads-up: the first name of the British singer-songwriter, who recently released her third album on the Gondwana label, is pronounced simply »Keelin«. Now you might ask, why does such a simple name have to be so complicated? But that also bypasses everything that can make music as beautiful as it is painful. Take the song »Simple«, for instance, which is the perfect title for this example. You could, of course, just write down on a piece of paper that you miss someone and that the world seems dangerously big when you’re not together.
Or you could also write a gently stumbling song that doesn’t quite dare to put every feeling in the spotlight, mixing fragile variations of jazz, folk and pop. Caoilfhionn Rose takes these little detours again and again on »Constellation«, drawing on the talent of colleagues like saxophonist Jordan Smart from the band Mammal Hands or pianist John Ellis, founding member of the Cinematic Orchestra. The album is full of songs that feel more like an unsolved mystery. Songs like »Rainfall«, for example, are much closer to Grouper than the music from their often sloppy new folk colleagues.
Constellation
