LITANY

At twenty-one, Beth Cornell and Jack Nicolaides could be forgiven for acting impetuously.

‘Woman,’ however, arrives after nearly a year of silence from the duo. And the result? Slow, furtive pop carefully constructed and at its very best.

Shrouded in a mist of reverb, gently picked guitar lines draw around rippling keys and understated drum beats to quietly devastating effect. And it’s relentless, with every chord change freighted with stark emotion.

What stops all of this emotion from teetering on the brink of monotony is the harsh contrast between Beth’s hushed vocals and the agitated cries from U.S. upstart Appleby. Like the whole track, it’s clever and considered interplay without sounding laboured and insincere.

Words by Chris Haywood

Tipped by Tom Cotton from Amazing Radio