Caitlin Park caught me by surprise. She's not completely new to the Sydney music scene, having released an EP Warriors with Wild Hearts last year. She was also a finalist in the FBi Northern Lights Competition, which I thought I paid pretty close attention to. A few weeks ago I stumbled on her newly released album Milk Annual on Bandcamp and was instantly hooked (and slightly embarrassed for not having found her before). Luckily it was the same week she was playing locally too, convenient timing!
Caitlin is not your regular folk singer. Milk Annual combines her beautiful, heartwarming vocals with interesting soundscapes, looping, and sampling to create a completely original sound. Caitlin's samples give her music an intriguing edge "“ her obsession with film and sound having been cultivated during a stint working at a cult video library. Children's screams, struck matches, and irregular heartbeats, as well as quirky speech from old film, might sound an odd mix, but they work perfectly together.
"Baby Teeth" uses hypnotic clapping, minimalistic guitar, and smooth, looped vocals to give the track a warm feeling, despite its discussion of inner battles. "Warriors With Wild Hearts" was recorded using samples from a public school orchestra, a wonderful concept. "Jack, Where You At?" tells the story of Caitlin's grandparents and their relationship. More of your typical folk song, this is so beautiful and uncomplicated, a duet between her and Belles Will Ring's Aiden Roberts.
Milk Annual is an album rich in creativity and innovation, as well as song-writing. I would normally wish there were more artists like her, but I don't think there are many who could pull her music off. Caitlin is one of a kind, I'm grateful I finally found her.
By
Hugh McClure
on
Nov 8, 2012
|
Sydney beatmaker Flume (known to his mom as Harley Streten) has been one of the most talked about young Australian musicians out there, and the buzz surrounding him has been generated in a very short period of time.I first saw him play at a showcase ...
read more →
By
Hugh McClure
on
Jan 7, 2013
|
Beach House is currently wowing fans on their current Australian tour, but there's a local band making music the dream pop duo would be proud of. Jay Kranz and Virginia Bott recently released their first single under their project Brighter Later (hav...
read more →
By
Hugh McClure
on
Mar 5, 2013
|
I've always really admired the music Rainbow Chan makes, but I haven't entirely understood it. Until now that is.As co-winner of the 2011 FBi Northern Lights Competition (alongside Oliver Tank), she visited the home of her musical idol Bjork (Rainbow...
read more →
By
Hugh McClure
on
Jun 11, 2012
|
Four years have passed since Sydney's Van She set the d-floors alight with their debut album V. It's been a long wait, but their follow-up record The Idea of Happiness is not far off.After dropping the album's title track ("The Idea of Happiness") ba...
read more →