Like so many other Australians, I recently sat home applauding Angus and Julia Stone as they took home award after award at the recent ARIAS for their sophomore effort Down the Way. Listening to Gossling’s new EP Until Then I wondered whether she’ll need as many long players under her belt before the awards start to flow.
The comparisons to Julia Stone are unavoidable; the artists sound uncannily similar with their breathy, ethereal voices. But Gossling brings more dynamics to her intimate tunes. She isn’t afraid to let that voice of hers soar, matching the lush instrumentals she favors. Her sound is big and full, with strings and pianos joining her voice as the songs reach emotional and musical crescendos.
While her sound is bigger, Gossling is careful to never lose the organic nature of her music with overproduction. Listening to the songs you get the sense that they could have been recorded during a jam session in someone’s living room. There’s that sense of immediacy and truth, as if the tunes were captured in one take.
The EP has just five tracks, mostly tales of love convincingly painted by the lyrics that never stoop to cliches. The epic “Oh Darling” may be one of the most beautiful and stirring songs I’ve heard all year. But I was thrilled to see her experiment a little in “I Was Young,” a tune which steers dangerously close to bluegrass in the rollicking choruses. I hope to see her play a little more with genres and sounds when the inevitable long player is released.
And it is inevitable, because Gossling is that good. We have a glut of talented female singer-songwriters in this country, but I expect to see her standing out from the pack in the coming years.
Image used with permission from Repertoire Publicity
Woot Woot. Gossling is the shizniz.