Artist Of The Week #178 - Bess Atwell
This week’s Artist of the Week is emerging singer and songwriter Bess Atwell - who has just released her highly-anticipated new album ‘Already, Always’ via Real Kind Records. Quickly becoming one of the most exciting new voices in English folk, ‘Already, Always’ might come across as a break-up record, the album is more about the deeper relationships that many of us experience throughout our lives, and how brittle and disconnected they can become over time. She took a moment to talk to us about how the album came together.
Hey there Bess, how are you? So your album is here - how does it feel to have It out there in the world?
Terrifying! But also really exciting. It’s amazing to share something that you’re really proud of. Only once it’s out does it feel like it really exists and now can’t ever be taken away from me, if that makes sense.
It is called ‘Already, Always’ - what is the meaning behind that?
I like the tension between the two words. I was feeling stuck and unable to find resolutions during the writing of this album and it seemed to capture that stagnated feeling. I felt destined to fall into the same patterns relentlessly, and I wanted to capture that sense of endlessness.
It comes from the phrase “already always listening” which I first came across when I took part in a personal development program as a teenager. I still have conflicted feelings towards the program, struggling with some of it’s cult-like characteristics, but it offered a way to make sense of the world at a time when I needed it. The phrase holds several significances for me, many of which are complicated and personal, but I can summarise the rough concept this way; it references how bad we can be at understanding others, especially those closest to us, because we’re seeing them through a lens that is distorted by what we’ve decided we already know of them.
Where was the album recorded? Any behind the scenes stories from the creative process you are happy to share with us?
We recorded at Soup Studios, which is currently based on the Lightship 95 (a big red boat that lives on the Thames) and in our bedrooms in Brighton. The boat did get quite rocky at times, which is generally fine when you have windows to orientate yourself, but the live room was windowless and I often had to question whether I was fainting mid-take or it was just high tide.
I only signed my record deal halfway through the recording process, so initially we were doing things as cheaply as possible. Kindly, to save me money, Giles (Barrett - producer) would periodically pack up his gear and head down to Brighton to record in my guitarist’s bedroom. I recorded most of the lead vocals myself, sitting in my pants in my parents’ attic during the heatwave of the first lockdown. I’m sure I have a better anecdote than that but you get the pants one, sorry.
The video for ‘Red Light Heaven’ was directed by Jamie Thraves - who has worked on some famous videos with the likes of Radiohead and Coldplay. How did that partnership come about and how does the video connect with the track?Jamie slid into my dms, the dirty dog. He just let me know he was a fan of my last single and interested in making a video for me if I needed one, which I did. Jamie is one of those extraordinary people who just makes stuff for the pure love of it. There was no monetary gain to be had for him in making a video for me, but he is just up for a good time and supporting other creatives. He just wants to make art with a bunch of nice people. He assembled the loveliest small crew and we just had a really fun couple of days.
Red Light Heaven is one of those Frankenstein songs that shifted subject matter several times until it encompassed most of the record’s themes in one. Making the video ended up being a really similar process. To illustrate this fractured, yet interlinked, narrative, we decided to use the video to highlight a sense of duality.
What are the key themes and influences on the album?
I went into the project knowing that I wanted to romanticise the mundane. To shine a light on those seemingly insignificant experiences that are somehow the most personal and yet the most relatable. It’s easy to assume it’s a break up record, but I tried to use that experience as a microcosm to express something broader. In my opinion, relationships with others are really just a manifestation of your relationship with yourself. Every record I’ll probably ever write will somehow boil down to existential loneliness and how it fuels an insatiable desire for connection… cheery!
Some of my main sonic influences for this album were Beach House, The National and Sharon Van Etten.
Do you have a favorite lyric on the album? If so, which one and why?
“I’m scared of sleeping and I don’t know why / How it dances you into a lonely night”
I think that one is quite self explanatory, which is probably why I like it.
Now the album is out there - what next for you?
I have a little run of instores around the release, and then I’m heading out on a UK tour in November / December. I’ve been writing and have slowly started recording some of those new songs which has been a nice palate cleanser. I also bought a new sofa recently so I’ll probably do a lot of sitting on that.
To support the new album, Bess Atwell will be heading out on a 15-date UK headline tour in November and December.
UK Tour dates
15th Nov - Liverpool, Leaf
16th Nov - Cardiff, Clwb Ifor Bach
18th Nov - Bristol, Exchange
19th Nov - Leeds, Headrow House
20th Nov - Edinburgh, Sneaky Pete's
21st Nov - Glasgow, Broadcast
23rd Nov - Newcastle, The Cluny 2
25th Nov - Birmingham, Hare & Hounds V2
26th Nov - Manchester, Deaf Institute
27th Nov - Nottingham, Bodega
30th Nov - Cambridge, Junction 2
1st Dec - Oxford, The Jericho Tower
2nd Dec - London, Oslo
3rd Dec - Southampton, Heartbreakers
4th Dec - Brighton, Patterns
Ahead of the tour Bess will be hosting a number of in-stores to tie in with the album release:
24th Sept - Resident Brighton
28th Sept - Rough Trade East
29th Sept - Banquet Records