Anyone who spent their formative years in Tennessee is going to have been molded by the push-pull effect of Nashville and Memphis, a drifter on the sonic tides of country and soul music. But throw into the mix the fact that Chastity Brown now calls Minneapolis home, another influential music city with its own idiosyncratic sonic flavors, and you have the makings of something special.
Sing to the Walls is a special album indeed, and those two genres are only a part of the musical building blocks found here, as “Wonderment,” the opener, shows us immediately, laying down an understated rock groove over which threads of soul and indie-pop coalesce into a very original yet not totally unfamiliar sound.
“Loving the Questions” also shows us that, as much as the sounds of the past influence Chastity Brown, she presents them in a forward-thinking way. Here we have the traditional soul ballad reinvented for the modern age, a head blend of analog traditions and digital delicacy.
“Golden” is a subtle and sensational blend of emotive sounds, leaning towards spaciousness and seduction, yet also slowly rising into more energetic and euphoric soundscapes. The title track is a gorgeous, heart-tugging ballad, and the final song, “Gertrude,” marks the passage of soul music into the future.
“Sing to the Walls” is an album where genres are being hopped, demarcations and barricades are being ignored, sonic worlds are colliding, and beautiful music is being made as a result. And with a string of US dates starting this week, now is the perfect time to embrace this great artist and her gorgeous, unique music.
