By Sean Colvin Staff Writer
Last week, I wrote about three bands with male songwriters, so this week I am focusing on some new releases by female artists.
Angel Olsen released her most instrumentally lush and critically acclaimed album yet, “My Woman.” In “My Woman,” Olsen ditched the whispery vocals of her earlier work for a full-blown pop-rock sound, blending 60s pop with zooming synthesizers and classic American rock guitar. When you listen to Olsen, you might think of some female superstars like Dolly Parton and Stevie Nicks and also groups like Heart and Neil Young. She has a knack for taking the sounds of these classic artists and making music that sounds not only current, but also urgent. “My Woman” is inherently feminist. It’s an album about desire, womanhood, discovery, disappointment and most poignantly, it’s about action and moving forward. You can find “My Woman” on Olsen’s Bandcamp page.
Japanese-born Mitski Miyawaki has been making waves since her 2014 album “Bury Me at Makeout Creek.” It is an album of love songs, protest and longing rolled into anthemic rock ballads. On first listen, Mitski’s fourth and most recent album, “Puberty 2” sounds quite like “Bury Me at Makeout Creek.” Lyrically, many of the themes in “Puberty 2” are much the same as those in “Bury Me at Makeout Creek.” These include city life, love, heartbreak, adulthood and the pursuit of happiness. Miyawaki uses allegory to talk about her life experiences in “Puberty 2.” She is not afraid to touch upon topics like sexuality, drug use and depression. Aside from the more obvious 90s indie rock comparisons, Miyawaki’s music might also be made akin to the music of Angel Olsen, The Breeders and Cocteau Twins. “Puberty 2” is an album that is sure to get your head moving and maybe even your heart swelling.
Melbourne, Australia’s Katie Dey is a solo artist who creates apocalyptic synth-pop compositions from her bedroom. Dey released her first full-length album, “Flood Network,” last month. Dey’s music has been referred to online as “nightmare pop” due to the arrhythmic and ethereal sounds she uses along with the highly distorted and pitch-shifted vocals of her music, which are mostly impossible to decipher—though the lyrics are not the focus of her music. It is the emotion Dey conveys that draws the listener in immediately. According to a 2015 interview with NOISEY, Dey is highly influenced by contemporaries like Alex G, R.L. Kelly, Elvis Depressedly and other bedroom pop musicians. Dey maintains a certain level of obscurity, opting not to make a fan page on Facebook, but you can find both of her releases on her Bandcamp page.
