Songs of the year, Number 4: Harkin - Body Clock (Official Video)

The first single released from Harkin's second album, Honeymoon Suite, 'Body Clock' was a marked sonic departure from her self titled debut. Entirely self recorded and self produced at home during lockdown, the album relied on electronic instrumentation equally as much as, if not more than, guitars. The result was a series of intricate and precise songs that mixed electronic soundscape with the rigours and surging guitars of indie rock. 

In the case of 'Body Clock', the result is a layered soundscape with a real sense of surging urgency that not only reflects the realities of lockdown in the UK but also the sense of determination felt by Harkin to continue working and recording, despite limitations and restrictions. The accompanying video, by Pastel Castle, is soothingly idyllic and pastoral on one hand while also feeling like an immersive video game. A tour de force of ingenuity, creativity and talent.  

Harkin - Here Again (Official Lyric Video)

A standout track from June's Honeymoon Suite album, 'Here Again' has a quiet, calm understated charm that feels uniquely Harkin. It builds gradually into an anthem, one that should endure.

Album review: Harkin - Honeymoon Suite

Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are really starting to see the impact of Covid on music. That is, the impact of Covid on individual artists creative output rather than the economic impact of Covid on musicians. 

While there have been songs, and albums, recorded and released during the early days of lockdown that directly or indirectly acknowledge the events we are living through (Charli XCX's How I'm Feeling Now album most famously, less famously Kali Uchis 'i want war (BUT I NEED PEACE)') what we're seeing now is something different: More considered works that either directly reference the pandemic lyrically or else have been impacted sonically by its restrictions. Last months Florence + The Machine album is a case in point and Harkin's second album, Honeymoon Suite, is another example of an album whose sonic palette has been defined by the pandemic.

Recorded and self produced during lockdown, Honeymoon Suite (the title refers to the Sheffield flat Katie Harkin and her partner Kate Leah Hewett moved into upon returning to the UK during the early days of Covid) has a more electronic sound than its self titled predecessor.  Because it was recorded in a flat over a pub, with Harkin's wife (Hewett and Harkin married in Eyam in September 2020) working call centre shifts from home, the various instruments and vocals were recorded according to noise levels outside and inside the flat. The overall feel of the album is of a very precise, lovingly crafted sonic soundscape fuelled by introspection. The result is sparse but vivid, evocative and moving.

Opening track, and first single, 'Body Clock' is a surging slice of electro pop which makes the most of its shimmering keyboard sound and urgent lyrics ("C'mon, c'mon" and "Closed mouths don't get fed") to create a sense of solitude and introspection where, when everything stops "it's just you and your body clock". 

It is followed by second single 'A New Day', a guitar led piece which has the sunny optimism of artists such as Mary Lou Lord or Tancred. There are string flourishes which work well to add shade and texture when set against the drums and guitar as Harkin sings "She tastes like a new day". 

The similarly evocative '(Give Me) The Streets Of Leeds' combines a sense of wistfulness for the past with surging piano, beats and melodic guitar. It is a song that clearly means business and it should, by rights, be a future single. Sonically, it builds on the work Harkin has done with Sleater-Kinney and complicates the anthemic indie rock sound of the piece with glitchy effects, giving it a scuffed indie disco feel that is very appealing.

This sense of glitchy experimentation can also be heard on 'To Make Her Smile', which begins slowly with minimalistic drums and a vocal loop that maintains "I feel as though you're in this time" and "I'm seeing through your eyes." The bpm increases significantly very quickly before slowing again and gentle minimalistic piano is introduced. It feels as though she is trying to write a love song but, having got underway, decided to have some fun and experiment. 

Electro inspired minimalism is a feature of the album as a whole, with album closer 'Driving down a flight of stairs' being a particular exemplar of this. It's an instrumental synth dominated piece that sounds like a soundtrack to someone peacefully drowning in a lake. 'Matchless Lightning', by comparison, feels like a slower, less hook-y take on Everything But The Girl's 'Hatfield 1980.' It is marked by a gentle throbbing pulse of a beat and sense of disquiet. There's a strong sense of self doubt and introspection, as though Harkin is looking back on life in the Before Times while "building a reality from romance and utility". "Baby we're the skin on the milk? or the fly in the ointment?" she wonders, before concluding "I'm not so sure anymore". It's like her internal monologue has been set to music. The image of "A vending machine of sweet talk" particularly evocative.

The tender electro ballad 'Mt. Merino' is enhanced by clever use of reverb and distortion which form a nice contrast to the gorgeous piano lines further on into the track. "Do we really have to leave here?" Harkin wonders from the car on the way to the airport "On the sunniest day of the year?" while noting that "The ancient part of my mind says everything's fine."

'Listening Out' has a darker sound driven by strong synths. There are delicate piano runs and breathed backing vocals that add an eerie beauty to layers of sonic sound and she sings of having to "Reassemble my love" in a way that suggests a practical mood, rather than a purely sorrowful one. 

'Talk Of The Town' is a sterner sounding piece, one that feels like a takedown. It is fast paced and intense. The scuffed beats contrast well with the lilting guitars and orchestral flourishes and there's a great synth dip in the middle of the track as well. 

Third single 'Here Again' makes interesting use of brass and glockenspiel while creating an understated indie anthem that makes good use of hypnotic layered vocals and crisp guitar. 

Harkin has shown considerable grit and determination in making this mesmerising album, and it's really paid off for her because while it showcases her skills as a songwriter it also showcases (perhaps accidentally) her skills as a producer. There are no notes out of place here, what we have instead is a crisp indie synth pop album which experiments with sound in a fun and pleasing way. It should both noted and enjoyed. 

Honeymoon Suite is released on Friday 17th June on Hand Mirror

Songs of the year, number 4: Harkin - Dial It In

Leeds finest Katie Harkin took time out from her duties in the Sleater-Kinney touring lineup to release her debut solo album in early 2020. An impeccable slice of indie rock as exemplified by the crisp, taut perfection of 'Dial It In' and the surging drama of lead single 'Nothing The Night Can't Change' (it was a very close choice between the two for this list...), she looked set for a great year... I think she did manage to get some solo dates in before the live music world closed, but it can't have been many. At least she's left us with the record though, and the quiet determination and shimmering steeliness of 'Dial It In'. 

Harkin (Katie Harkin) - Nothing The Night Can’t Change (Live at South By...

While there are no full live sets of Harkin available on YouTube, you can listen to the most recent Harkin single, 'Dial It In', here. There's also a YouTube upload of an Instagram live Carrie Brownstein and Katie Harkin did in April, where they talk about Katie's debut album.

Fantasy Festival number 18: The Lineup

otta: Finnish/British musician otta's debut EP was released earlier this year. Including as it did the broodingly minimalistic 'Near Enough A Woman', it's fair to say that this young songwriter has created a stir amongst those with an interest in slightly jazz influenced understated songwriting. You can find out more on otta's Bandcamp.

Jess Williamson: Texas born, LA dwelling singer/songwriter Jess Williamson is rooted in country but she also inhabits a wild, sweeping soundscape that goes beyond Americana. You imagine prairie winds but you can also sense speakeasy's and dark and seedy LA streets. You can find out more here.

Ailibhe Reddy: Irish singer/songwriter Ailibe Reddy could perhaps be described as urban folk. Her songs have a tradition of folk songwriting behind them, but her concerns are of the urban life: Tube trains, shame, relationships. There is noise and grit in the mix, and she is certainly a songwriter for our times. You can find out more here.

Tancred: Jess Abbot's fourth album as Tancred, Nightstand, was released in 2018. In equal measure pared down and intimate confessional and brash guitar led indie rock swagger, it deserved a greater degree of success than it had. Those of a certain age might think of early Liz Phair or, more likely, Mary Lou Lord, but Abbot is her own woman and transcends all comparisons with the quality of her voice and her songwriting. You can find out more here.

The Coathangers: The garage rock band from Atlanta, Georgia make catchy, thrashy, occasionally sixties girl group esque songs that will remind you of both the Shondells and the Rondelles, as well as - inevitably - the Girls In The Garage series. You can find out more here.

Tei Shi: Colombian-Canadian singer, songwriter and producer Valerie Teicher Barbosa makes harmony based, R&B flavoured indie pop, with a slyly subversive edge. You can find out more here.

Harkin: Katie Harkin began her musical career in Leeds as one half of teenage indie punk band Sky Larkin. Since then she's collaborated with members of Wye Oak and Wild Beasts and become a member of the Sleater-Kinney touring band. Her debut self titled album was released in early 2020 and was a series of crisp, hook based songs in the indie rock tradition. She will be back to promote the album, it is to be expected, in 2021. In the meantime, you can find her on Insta.

Nadine Shah: South Tyneside singer, songwriter and musician Nadine Shah has just released her fourth album, Kitchen Sink, a series of highly timely observational vignettes taken from a life where she has often felt like an outsider. All her rage, all her anger, all her talent for observing and crafting songs that pierce modern mores like arrows, comes out in a series of unforgiving bluesy rock anthems. She is astonishingly good live, and you can find out more here.

Imogen Heap: Singer, songwriter, producer and sound engineer Imogen Heap is as known for her inventive use of technology (her musical gloves being one example) as for her music itself. To see her  live is to experience music technology development in action, but - both as a member of Frou-Frou and in a solo capacity - she has also written some damn good left of centre pop tunes. You can find out more here, and watch her weekly livestreams here.

St Vincent: Singer, songwriter and producer Annie Clark has been making music as St Vincent since 2006. Hers has been a low key rise, not indicative of superstardom, but well respected and highly influential, garnering respect and headliner status. Each of her albums has a distinct musical identity and hinterland of its own, with 2017's Masseduction having a sexy, slinky quality to it that veered from the unbearably sad to the joyously hedonistic. Hers is a big, complex sound, a sort of baroque art pop, never the same, but always unmistakably her. You can find out more here.

Harkin - Nothing the Night Can't Change

On the back of yesterday's post, it felt only right to post about Harkin, who was the support act on some of Sleater-Kinney's recent UK tour dates (the rest were filled by the excellent Big Joanie). A touring member of Sleater-Kinney, Katie Harkin cut her teeth as a teenage singer/songwriter in Leeds band Sky Larkin, and there's a fantastic interview with her in Ablaze! 11, if you can get hold of it.

As Harkin she's been performing live for a couple of years now, but the releases have been slow to emerge. Until now that is.

While recent single 'Nothing The Night Can't Change' is more synthy than previous offerings, it has the same tightness, the same impeccable, catchy riff driven guitar pop sound as her previous work has. When she played it in Manchester, it was the song that got her the most interest and attention from the crowd, which isn't a surprise given how dramatically catchy it is. I think a Harkin album or EP might be in the offing, and she's certainly continuing to tour, post S.K, so well worth keeping an eye out.