Låpsley - Painter (Valentine)

Over the last few years there’s been a subtle shift in the paradigm in terms of how musicians present themselves. No longer it seems do new artists have to have charisma or stand for anything but the music they make. Releasing via the internet as a ‘mystery artist’ or an alter-ego is almost de rigueur these days – the statement ‘it’s just about the music’ seems to crop up time and time again. Pop music has resorted to the same traditions as both classical and folk music have done before, bringing a new conservatism where doing anything that could be seen as detracting from the substance of the song itself is pooh-poohed by the new tastemaker elite.

It’s why somebody like Låpsley fits perfectly in. Now don’t misunderstand us, this isn’t a criticism of this young singer / songwriter / producer who has started to weave some quite brilliant material; far from it. It’s just a fact that she’s operating in a way that many iGeneration artists are right now – with some affordable technology, an electronic alter ego and with little flamboyance, extravagance or pretentiousness about the way she presents her art. 

What little we do know of Låpsley is that she’s 17, lives in Liverpool, loves sailing plus photography and after a number of early acoustic attempts and electronic dabbling has left many listeners breathless with her beautiful song Station. It’s a tune that without any label backing became a word of mouth (or should that be blog to blog?) hit since it was first uploaded in late December, including on Breaking More Waves.

Now Låpsley follows up Station with what feels like its natural sibling. Painter (Valentine) bathes in soft electronic hues of loveliness. It’s the musical equivalent of a cuddle when you’re at your most vulnerable from someone who really cares. It’s a song that reshapes, twists and distorts reality and makes everything seem OK. It’s the stuff of dreams, dreams that are magnified by the lyrics: "Come paint these wings and make me fly."

It is, we hope you agree, just gorgeous. 

In this case being 'just about the music' is 100% enough.

Låpsley - Painter (Valentine)