Roxanne De Bastion - You & Me, We Are The 
Same (Nomad Songs)
Release Date: Out Now
As opening tracks to albums go, 'Molecules' is as intense and purposeful as they come. Roxanne De Bastion means business with a track that takes on religion and opinions masquerading as fact set to a soundtrack of twitchy guitars and icy cool vocals. 'You & Me, We Are The Same', then, gets off to an absolute flyer and its no surprise as this is the new album from one of the most accomplished and dedicated artists around right now. Indeed, 'I Remember Everything' is up next with a vibe that reminds me of Dubstar or St Etienne because of the dreamy vocals and shimmering melodies that create some light through the rainy day.
'Delete Forget Repeat' continues with the theme of understated grandiose songwriting and that really is the key to the success of this album - songs that might, at first glance, appear to be standard indie pop fare soon reveal their inner glory with triumphant delight. The dark tones of 'Erase' have a hint of the Florence Welch theatrical performance to them while 'Heavy Lifting' has a magical nature that feels like it could be used in a stage musical about someone dragging themselves up from a downtrodden existence to shine - Cinderalla but set in Sheffield in the mid-90s.
The uplifting and comforting recent single 'Ordinary Love' works beautifully in the middle of this collection as a song that seeks to reassure and celebrate anyone going through tough times with their relationship. The gentle combination of piano and guitar on 'Smoke' speaks of a song written in the grey of a mid-morning malaise while 'I Know You' is probably the best example of De Bastion's cool but empathetic vocal that seeks to both take control but also as for your support with every breath.
Penultimate track 'London, I Miss You' speaks to me as a former resident of the big smoke but is more about the inevitable passage of time and the combination of vocal and piano gives this a pre-Christmas sadness that I adore. The album closes out on 'The Weight', a confessional as much as it is a cry for help in the confusion of adulthood set to the tender and rippling guitars that are ever present and perfectly suited in their support role on this album. On this album Roxanne De Bastion captures a huge amount of emotion and manages to parcel it up neatly in ten little packages that have heavy hearts but, more importantly, the packages are arranged in a row, drawing a neat line under this passage in her life. Utterly beautiful.
More information: https://www.facebook.com/Roxannedebastion
Live Dates:
1st October - Union Chapel, London
3rd October - Bodega Social, Nottingham
4th October - Chalk, Brighton
9th October - Lafayette, London
12th October - Moth Club, London
15th October - Portland Arms, Cambridge
18th October - Camberley Theatre, Camberley
23rd October - Arlington Arms, Newbury
25th October - The Stables, Milton Keynes