There are only a select few that possess the majestic ethereal goddess levels that Kathryn Joseph does.
Some project this in an angelic manner. Some in a far more earthbound aesthetic. Some even go a bit deeper and have an element of the underworld about them. They’ve seen and experienced the dirt, the horror, the pain.
Some have all three, which might be the most human of them all.
WE WERE MADE PREY. explores the primal, even feral aspects of our character, of our very make-up.
Artists have written about conflict, internal and external, for decades, even centuries, and this will never change, but where Kathryn is excelling on this masterpiece of a record is working them both, the inner turmoil of greed and our deadly sins and the horrors in the Middle East. The death of tens of thousands of children puts a perspective on the trials and tribulations of our immaterial lives, but they are far more pressing and immediate to us. It also makes us doubt our own triggers, our touch paper, our darker side.
Recorded out in the isolation and sparseness of the Outer Hebrides on the Isle of Lewis at Black Bay Studios, self-described as the residential studio on the edge of the earth, it is one of the most far north-westerly points of the British Isles, which is baked deep in this LP. At times, it feels like Kathryn has written and even recorded this whilst in the middle of the night, outside, alone, terrified and exhilarated.
WOLF. is a dark and powerful opener. The organ is gothic and almost industrial, an eighties atmosphere, but her voice is pure. Some might add reverb, but it strikes out like the light in the darkness. There are heavy, intense synthesised effects that could be guitar but come across as otherworldly lightning and thunder flashing in and disappearing as quickly. “Cover me in your blood.”
DARK. wasn’t going to dial up the atmospherics. If anything, it doubles down. There’s static and electricity as if sitting under pylons, or waiting for the storm again.
Kathryn has previously used her stunning vibrato on such devastating songs as ‘From When I Wake, The Want Is’ but on this LP she pares it back, there’s a nuance to her delivery, whisper, crystal clarity, the smack of diction, and range, incredible range.
HARBOUR. utilises synthetic drum to unique effect. There is distortion on her voice here, the static has moved as if she has been overtaken by it. Towards the end, it becomes overwhelming to the point you can’t distinguish the lyrics at moments, but this just adds to the intense and live feel. She is on your shoulder, she is your conscience, she is your god and devil.
BEL (II). is a horror movie. She is in an empty room, but not there when you enter. She is in your dream. She is your ghost.
DEER. is the calm, or the dawn. There is minimalism for the most part, but this starts to take off, like a murmuration of starlings at first light.
DRAWN. continues the quiet sunrise. D(r)awn. What seems like rain is falling. Hitting the peat ground outside an open window. A docile sea in the distance.
ROADKILL. begins the return to the intense chaos. A destruction of life. It’s the most full musically speaking effort. Explosive percussion, shrieking, echoing synths.
It’s an immersive experience, one you can’t take for granted and play at any time. An album is a precious thing, it’s taken time and effort and pain and experience and their whole being to produce. FIRE. creates a full stop. Something that punctuates every song on this piece of art. It’s basically just her, completing the circle. The human condition. The horror, the primal urge, the evil, the destruction, the revival, the return.
“I am a wolf now, so I have to go”
