Fittingly, given its Halloween release date, ‘A Little Death’ is one of those rare albums that you don’t really notice at first, before it creeps up on you and worms its way inside your body and, finally, your soul.
Claire Rousay has previously described her work as “emo ambient”, which does a pretty solid job of explaining both the emotional and textural palette of her music. She’s also extremely prolific. ‘A Little Death’ is her 20th full-length album and is the latest quiet stunner in her impressive, less-than-a-decade-old discography.
While some of her releases have featured Rousay’s vocals and a more ‘pop’ (a relative term) approach, ‘A Little Death’ is an emotionally resonant work of delicate musique concrète — its eight tracks are built on minimalist compositions and field recordings, the latter of which Rousay describes as her “core solo practice”.
This expressive, textured collection takes its time to reveal its wonders. The first couple of tracks swerve emotional clarity. Just is especially challenging, but halfway through, with the arrival of the beautiful Somehow, light floods in and ‘A Little Death’ starts to make sense.
The latter songs are absolutely wonderful. Somewhat Burdensome features gorgeous guitars and electronic flickers, while the lengthy self-titled closer ends with the sound of chirping crickets, setting this collection off to a peaceful sleep. A deeply satisfying album that requires a bit of effort, ‘A Little Death’ reveals an artist in total command of her poignant craft.
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