EP Review: Clara Mann – 'Consolations'
Bristolian singer-songwriter Clara Mann invites you to step into a world of magical realism as she shares intimate debut EP ‘Consolations’.
Clara’s music is not simply an object to be admired, but rather a living, breathing thing whose sheer beauty moves to tears. Inspired by art in its many variations, but most prominently the paintings of Edward Hopper, ‘Consolations’ feels universal; perfectly capturing the ebbs and flows of life and love. As Clara explains: “My music emerged from a world of books, paintings, and poetry, as well as a love of song, and for me, it is a weaving together of those loose strands, an assembling and mending of the fragments of the things I love, that might otherwise have remained scattered across my life and never quite have come together.”
It is this ability to mend and heal that stands out on songs like heartfelt opening track ‘Waiting For The Flight’. To a delicate backdrop of softly swaying strings, Clara’s vocals are coated in a sense of acceptance and defeat, giving her poetic lyricism a yearning edge - “I filled my bed with green while I was asking you to stay.” Standout track, however, remains the EP’s lead single ‘Station Song’: a peaceful moment of reflection that Clara describes as “a lonely song, about moving to the city and feeling detached from the people around me, about mourning the ease of a distant quiet life, and the uncomplicated relationships that punctuated it.”
‘Consolations’ in all its enchanting glory is an outstanding debut that not only puts Clara Mann on the map as a disarming songwriter and vocalist but redefines the scope of what music is capable of. Stepping outside of herself to illustrate a wonderfully human experience, Clara crafts soundscapes that are undeniably timeless.
Words by Laura Freyaldenhoven