January 30th sees the release of Femmepop’s brand new E.P, entitled ‘Underground’. Piloted by Irish songstress, Margaret O’Sullivan, this release follows the widely regarded and musical highlight of 2014, ‘From a girl who never sleeps’. I’ve admired Femmepop’s music for a number of years now, so to be offered an exclusive peek at her new material was a total no brainer.
The record opens with title track, ‘Underground’ and a steady drum beat leads us into the first song. Quickly we are refamilairised with Femmepop’s no nonense approach for writing catchy pop melodies, along with a perfectly uncomplicated view of song structure. The music is uplifting and it burns warmly below the surface like a bed of hot coals. The smooth sound of ‘There is a place’ compliments her voice perfectly and the vocals really soar on this track. I love the way the music meanders its way deep into your brain and the ease in which you find yourself lost within the dreaminess it projects. Third track, ‘The Game’ is a personal favourite of mine and it embeds itself within you from the first listen. Although its sound conjures images of blue skies and cruising along sunny highways, O’Sullivans words appear to dig a little deeper, exploring her own thoughts of individuality. The last but one track ‘Celestial’ again takes us on another trip into the skies and it further reaffirms that her voice could easily make the sound of a metal bar hitting a trash dumpster sound interesting. We finish as strongly as we began, with ‘Games & Toys’, a predominately intrumental track that is a vast and unfeigned piece of music. You could say its the perfect ending to a throughly enjoyable record, a record that sadly draws to a close far too quickly.
There’s one thing that you can always rely on from Femmepop and that’s O’Sullivan’s incredible prowess for song writing. Her passion is always present and when she sings, its hard to imagine it coming from anywhere but the heart. To be this early into the year and be gifted with such a great sounding E.P is an absolute treat and ‘Underground’ has certainly set a high bar for anyone releasing new material in 2016! For further updates on Femmepop’s new E.P, drop by and give her page the thumbs up www.facebook.com/Femmepop
By Rhys Pearce
Rhys Pearce is a Musician and Writer from the United Kingdom, with a number of years experience writing for a host of Websites and Zines, as well as recording and touring in bands himself.
Email: rhys.pearce@beta.newretrowave.com
