Visions of Albion Release Their Perfectly Formed Folk EP
Klee Music are very much taking Liverpool’s Folk scene and bringing it back into the spotlight for new releases. Their latest from Visions of Albion is the much anticipated debut 5-track EP, featuring the duo of Daniel Ryan on guitar and Samantha Shields’s vocals which blend together wonderfully having had the chance to evolve together since they met in 2018. The opening track, ‘You’re Not Alone’ is a brilliantly worked piece, linking up with Ryan’s vocals the song’s train-like continuation allows for verses and choruses to pick up pace, crescendoing into a swirl of vocal harmony, tremolo guitar riffs and general feel-good vibes all round.
The entire EP combines delicately sung, melodic-heavy songs and country/americana scenes all in one, giving us a real taste of the scope that’s at the disposal of the songwriting duo. Hints to their influences seep through, with Fleetwood Mac and Laurel Canyon being two that are most evident to those that are familiar.
When they began working together, they’d had previous groups that hadn’t quite taken off, but both felt they understood what they wanted from the music they were creating when they decided to go off on their own. With the notion of this aspiring Merseyside Folk scene, still in its early days but quickly taking hold, it’s a perfect time for the laid back style to make its return. With the grassroots scene of Liverpool providing a great chance for events to pick up, Visions of Albion have put the work in already and paving the way for the movement.
The EP was recorded at CrossTown Studios with Jon Lawton’s experience allowing them to take full advantage of the sounds they had in mind. The whole EP has this togetherness that truly blends the childhood influences of both Ryan and Shields, looking into Irish folk and incredible jazz singers such as Ella Fitzgerald respectively, those telltale signs are behind the music and driving it on.
