Writing about new music can often seem a little odd if, like me, you go to a lot of gigs, because the new releases you’re writing about are already very familiar to you, hearing them in their early stages as the artist road tests the songs live before the final polished recorded versions are done and dusted.
So it has been recently with Alice Jemima. By the time her Liquorice EP saw the light of day, the likes of So, Under The Radar and the title track already seemed like old friends to me; my interest was more what the final studio versions of the songs sounded like compared to the live versions that had become embedded in my head. However, new track Dodged A Bullet comes with a slightly different context; I think I’ve only heard it two or three times live, including at Alice’s first London headline show at the Sebright Arms (where members of London Grammar were in attendance to check her out) so this one comes relatively fresh wrapped, still full of the joys of discovery.
Dodged A Bullet refers to Alice looking back at a relationship that she realises that she’s better out of. “I won’t be singing your name,” she coos with that soft voice that has been casting its magic over me since 2011. As with any song I’ve ever heard by Alice it encompasses her ability to make pretty melodies without over complicating things sonically. Here you’ll find some ghostly guitar twangs, come-down electronic pulses and beats all perfectly placed with an alluring delicacy. She really is the queen of the exquisite pop song. Take a listen below.
You'll find Alice playing at a number of festivals over the next few weeks including Sea Change Festival in Totnes, Bestival, Manchester's Neighbourhood Feestival and one in Hackney called Wonderland, hopefully just so we can all do the Alice In Wonderland joke. (Sorry).
Alice Jemima - Dodged A Bullet
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