EP Review: Etaoin - 'Bedroom Walls'
Etaoin releases her compelling and confessional debut EP, ‘Bedroom Walls’ out now via Made Records.
If there’s anything that can be said about Etaoin, it’s that she’s certainly unveiling herself to be a force to be reckoned with and her debut EP, ‘Bedroom Walls’ is a masterclass in confessional songwriting. The EP is comprised of the EP’s title track, ‘Bedroom Walls’, ‘Pale Damp Cheeks’ already reviewed on When The Horn Blows.
‘I Dare You’ was the penultimate release taken from the EP and it’s her boldest single to date. Sure, there’s a sense of vulnerability that underpins Etaoin’s sound. It bleeds out of the track’s gentle, acoustic intro and Etaoin’s confessional lyrics. But ‘I Dare You’ has a new energy, and it reveals Etaoin as a powerhouse. Bold, assertive, and empowering, ‘I Dare You’ is a lesson in self-respect and self-love. Etaoin explains, ‘In life it's not always about who turns up for you, it's about the times you turn up for yourself.’
Through ‘I Dare You’, Etaoin reclaims her agency by cutting off contact with someone who doesn’t have her best interests at heart. She does this against a stripped, raw acoustic guitar melody that lets her unique vocal booms with a new-found freedom and confidence.
‘For Her’ is the final track to be unveiled from the EP. It reverts back to Etaoin’s more hushed and aching sound, featuring delicate finger-picking and Etaoin’s raw, yearning vocal. There’s a classic acoustic baroque vibe to the wistful melodies underpinning Etaoins sound here. In essence, ‘For Her’ is a heart-rending love letter to Etaoin herself - ‘It’s about waiting and praying for your old self to come back,’ says Etaoin.
‘Bedroom Walls’ is an emotionally charged, honest and aching debut EP, from a gripping artist with unbounded appeal.
Words of Karla Harris