Flamenco and Mariachi influences meet the soulful pop of Dusty Springfield head-on, on Yolanda – the debut album from Oxford singer/songwriter/guitarist Emma Hunter.

A LATIN AGENDA FOR OUR TIMES

Oxford singer/songwriter/guitarist Emma Hunter has been making some impressive waves recently.  The artist otherwise (or, perhaps, formerly) known as Emma De Lacy has been wowing audiences on her tour supporting Oxford indie band The Unbelievable Truth this summer – and that’s not all she’s been up to.  She’s also a member of Oxfordian all-female band Beaker and her CV also includes performances on the main stages of Truck Festival, Riverside and Cornbury festival. 

Yolanda is Emma’s debut album and it provides her with an opportunity to take a deep dive into her cultural roots.  Those roots are closely entwined with the Saphardi culture of the Iberian Peninsular and Yolanda is crammed with flamenco Sketches of Spain and the Mariachi flavours of Mexico.  Aided by her trusted companions: drummer Tom Bruce and bassist Hayley Wright, Emma Hunter may well have come with a Latin agenda for the mid-21^st Century…

Emma also clearly has a liking for the mid-60s soulful pop of artists like Dusty Springfield and echoes of that golden era sit comfortably alongside Emma’s Latin explorations.  Anna Calvi, Sharon Van Etten and PJ Harvey have also all had a significant influence on Emma’s music and she uses those influences to give her songs a wonderfully raw edge.  Flamenco, Mariachi, Dusty Springfield, Anna Calvi?  That’s one heck of a stew – and, with Yolanda, Emma Hunter serves it cooked to perfection.

THE MYSTICISM OF ANCIENT MEXICO

The flamenco-with-a-difference agenda is set, right from the ‘off,’ with opening track, Sun Blood.  Jangly, echo-laden guitar provides a pared-back accompaniment to Emma’s strong, dreamy, supremely melodic voice.  Tom’s drums resonate as passion and energy grow.  The backing vocals are distant – and slightly eerie – and it’s so easy to imagine the deranged gyrations of a hypnotized couple as they perform an insane flamenco.

Emma nods in the direction of Nick Cave – albeit a version of The Vampire that’s been infused with flamenco – with Where the Roses Grow.  Emma’s guitar kicks out a relentless, merciless rhythm, whilst her pleading, passionate vocal tones charm and intimidate at the same time.  And, sticking with outside influences, it’s the Spaghetti Western spirit of Ennio Morricone that inhabits Horizon Hunting, Emma’s tale of a woman’s desperate longing for a child that she fears her body can’t deliver.  Clangy guitars exchange licks as Emma, once again, thoroughly inhabits her lyrics.

The mysticism of Ancient Mexico is channeled for Snake, an intimate, dramatic ballad.  Emma’s vocals, sung to the backing of a strummed electric guitar, are vivid and dreamy.  The Snake of the song’s title is a metaphor for alcohol and its power of destruction and Emma gets firmly to grips with that power as, with the strength of both her voice and her lyrics, she recognizes and reverses the destructive tendencies.

CHANNELING DUSTY

Described as: “…a stark, hook-laden Mariachi rock number,” the poppy, accessible Here I Go depicts “…the Stockholm Syndrome that one can experience at the end of a broken relationship.”  And, despite the song’s apparent accessibility, lyrics like: “Now I’m blind, I can’t see the night” ensure that none of the album’s trademark dark undercurrent is lost.

A twangy, descending guitar figure sets the scene for Nightingale, one of the album’s true highlights.  Drummer Tom provides a suitably dramatic cymbal rhythm on a tune that takes its cue from Angelo Badalementi’s Twin Peaks score.  There’s a sophistication at play here that’s been absent so far and the Dusty Springfield tones in Emma’s voice are particularly apparent.  It even sounds like there might be a few strings working their magic, somewhere deep in the mix…

AN EPIC CENTREPIECE

Perhaps the album’s centrepiece, the epic Morrire signals a return to the album’s Latin theme.  The song is already a favourite feature of Emma’s live shows and it earned the ‘Top Track of 2023’ award from Oxford music bible, Nightshift Magazine.  It’s easy to understand why.  The song’s flamenco stylings are complemented by blasts of Mariachi trumpet.  It’s a big ballad and Emma puts everything she has into her stunning vocal delivery.  There are intimate moments, too – and that’s where the song is particularly interesting – as Emma whispers: “Morrire, Morrire,” as a prelude to the song’s climax.

The full glorious force of Emma’s amazing voice really hits home with her a-cappella intro to Hide.  Tom’s drums and Hayley’s clangy bass kick in as the song transforms into high-emotion pop.  Strains of Dusty are still detectable in Emma’s voice but, this time the more dramatic aspects of the song: “It’s coming for you, so don’t hide your desire” also have a dash of Toyah Wilcox about them.

A SOARING FINALE

A shuffling drumbeat sets the pace for Love is Not a Choice, another song with a Mexican aura.  The song takes its title from a line in the Shakespeare play, Much Ado About Nothing, but the music evokes the streets of Tijuana.  Emma’s guitar is solid and uncomplicated and the drums and bass are punchy and reliable.  This song is all about Emma’s voice and she definitely delivers.  And, if you’re not up on your feet by the time the song reaches its “I won’t let you down” coda, you can’t have been paying attention.

Closing track, Gates of Love, brings the sun down – literally – on this excellent album.  Emma’s multitracked vocals sound great during the verses and, when Emma and the band let loose for the soaring chorus, the sound is BIG.  Like several other tracks, it’s a song that captures the spirit of the album in its entirety.  Yolanda is an excellent album.

Watch the official video to Gates of Love – the album’s closing track – below:

Emma Hunter: Website

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