Amelie Lucille - Amelie Lucille (Self-Released)

A student at the famous LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, Amelie Lucille is a singer-songwriter from New York who has just released her debut self-titled EP. The gloomier side of artists like The Cure or the emotional intensity of Cocteau Twins are clear influences, while stylistically she is closer to musicians including Lana Del Rey and Cat Power. Lucille is releasing the EP at the age of 14, and about this fact she says, “This album is my growing up album. It’s the first real thing I’ve ever made.” Now, journalists tend to focus on a hook which helps the artist to stand out, but it is nevertheless remarkable that she managed to create something that sounds like the work of a seasoned professional with a great deal of experience.

Front and center on each song is Lucille’s voice and lyrics, evident from the very first song which begins hauntingly a capella and slowly introduces sparing instrumentation with guitar and violin. Lucille maintains this image as an introspective torch singer with startlingly effective results on other tracks like “Token” and “His Song.” But the EP ends on a surprise with the full band sound of “Because Of You,” which shows another brilliant path for Lucille to pursue more fully in the future. It has touches of lighter 90s alt rock and even a little alt country, and proves Amelie Lucille is a musician who clearly has a lot to offer now and for years to come.