Five songs that cover such diverse subjects as childhood recollections, the loss of a loved one and the negligence of absentee landlords.  Threads is the new EP from At The Barrier fave Hannah Scott.

THREADS IS HERE!

We’ve already had some enticing nibbles of the treats that Hannah Scott has been storing up for us with Threads, her new EP.  It’s as long ago as March when In Your Light, the EP’s lead single dropped through the ATB letter box.  The song, an earworm of the best kind and a 50^th birthday present from Hannah to her artist mother, set our pulses racing and left us thirsting for more.

And, sure enough, along came ‘more.’  Follow-up single, the hard hitting, cynical, Sitting in the Dark, landed in late April and the song’s freshness and vibrancy raised expectations for the promised parent EP still further.  And, now, at last, Threads – that long-anticipated EP – is with us.

Suffolk-born, South London-based contemporary folk artist Hannah Scott has been an At The Barrier favourite ever since we stumbled across her 2023 EP, Ancient Lights.  Since then, new Hannah Scott material has passed our way at fairly regular intervals – perhaps most notably, her lush folky-poppy 2024 album, Absence Of Doubt.  And every song has received a heartfelt welcome!

GRIEF AND FOND MEMORIES

For Threads, Hannah has, once again, enlisted the co-production services of Tori Amos/Anna Calvi stalwart Adrian Hall.  Drummer Geoff Holroyde (Feeder, Simply Red) is also back in the fold and, once again, Hannah has recorded her own vocal, piano and acoustic guitar parts in the familiar surroundings of her home.

A burst of slide guitar launches the EP’s intimate, Americana-infused title track.  Hannah’s lyrics reflect upon the enduring connection that she still feels for her childhood home and the strength of that connection comes across in the vulnerability of her vocal tones.  Adrian’s production is rich and full, with Hannah’s piano and acoustic guitar prominent, Geoff’s drums solid and a wistful-sounding electric guitar adding well-placed highlights.

Hannah describes the bittersweet Untold as: “… a grief-inspired song, written following the loss of a family member last year, exploring the quiet sorrow of losing not only a loved one but also the stories, knowledge and memories they carried.”  The grief is expressed with a passion that’s emphasized by Harry Fausing-Smith’s strident-sweet string arrangement and, as Hannah sings lines like: “As I feel this grief unfold, for all your stories left untold,” it’s clear that her sadness is also mixed with memories of the fondest kind.

AN IMPRESSIVE BIRTHDAY GESTURE

Days to Come emerged from a 2024 Kickstarter campaign, in which subscribers could pledge for a personalized song.  Fingerpicked guitar provides the principal accompaniment as Hannah sings her insightful lyrics: “I see myself through someone else’s eyes, watch the world through someone else’s life.”  And that insight is conveyed in a delightfully dreamy way.

Lead single, In Your Light – the one that Hannah wrote as a birthday present to her mother –  is the EP’s oldest song.  I’ve previously observed that, as a birthday gift it’s a markedly more impressive gesture than a box of Liquorice Allsorts.  And Hannah’s mother will, surely, have been thrilled by lines like: “Coz we’re just too alike to be anything other than mother and daughter” and “There’s no need to fight distance – there’ll always be blood here to bind us.”  And they’re sung with a sincerity that is clearly evident.  Harry’s strings are back and they sit comfortably within the gentle guitar/piano/drum accompaniment.

This short collection is brought to its close with Sitting In The Dark, Hannah’s stinging rebuke to the attitudes and negligence of her London landlords.  The song is actually a joyful and upbeat affair, despite lyrics like: “Now the rental system’s broken, as everybody knows, but London really knocks it out the park.  Once they’ve taken half your income, no-one cares that it’s your home.  That’s why I’m still sitting in the dark.”  I don’t know if those words elicited any action, but I reckon they caused a few guilty sphincters to tighten.  Don’t you?

Listen again to In Your Light, the EP’s lead single – below:

Hannah Scott: Website

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