THE PERSONAL is political is a phrase/slogan/rallying call which has been around since the late 1960s, but is one that feels ever more pertinent and apt.
It is an attitude which underscores Through Water, the second album by Yorkshire electronica singer-songwriter Låpsley, where issues such as climate change and feminism are not abstract events or ideas, but are felt and experienced every bit as keenly as individual realities, and as personally as love and relationships with other individuals.
The balmy opening chords, which suggest the ebb and flow of a tide, are accompanied by unsettling reflections on climate change; ‘Womxn’, the most dance oriented track is a cry of determination, a personal affirmation, and a declaration of solidarity from one woman to all women: “Stop judging her...just a little bit of power/I feel like a womxn.”
Musically this is minimalist electronica, but with just a few, simple chords, she creates something that with power, movement, and depth - ‘My Love Was Like The Rain’ and the quietly stunning closer, ‘Speaking Of The End’, being highlights in this regard.
Lyrically and thematically, Through Water is Låpsley’s most mature and accomplished work to date, marking her move from alternative pop singer to Artist.
