Miriam Clancy releases stunning Gen X throwback album ‘Black Heart’
From immersing herself in NYC, followed by a shift to the depths of rural Pennsylvania, Aotearoa’s Miriam Clancy has curated a solid lineup of talented musicians that feature on her new record Black Heart – a melodic Gen X explosion of heart, rage and release reminiscent of the great female artists at the fore of 90’s alt-music and the era’s definitive sonic aesthetic.
Listen to Black Heart
Black Heart is a long time in the making, a conglomerate of intensely personal stories of family history, of longing, of desire, and of shattered dreams. This album is a reckoning, into which Miriam breathes life and texture. Miriam’s characters come to life through her deft storytelling; Miriam’s beckoning vocals envelop and elevate the listener to each narrative of eleven different histories, where gallows humour and ethereal romance frame the otherwise heavy themes of death, suicide, addiction and beginnings/endings.
Miriam says, “This album is a tsunami, a spiritual purge – smashing out my big feelings with an insight that growing up too soon has gifted me. Some of these songs are staring right at my childhood trauma, so it’s a vulnerable and awkward space, which is a bit freaky. I had to do it for myself, but hopefully it might help others in a similar situation past/present not to feel freakishly alone,” notes Miriam. “It’s also calling out the dependency most of us have with connectivity, fomo and being overwhelmed with too much info, being too accessible by our own compulsive hand and laying ourselves to waste. It’s handy and beautiful but we are running straight into the sun and can’t help it. I can’t help it either. We are all going down together!”
Black Heart captures the brilliance of Miriam and her telepathic band featuring Jeremy McDonald, Will Graefe and Mike Riddleberger as they move through intricate clouds of Clannad-esque guitars and vocals, which turn to sparse folk-rock deep cuts twisting into fleeting moments of Roxy Music influenced art-pop, and out again via a grand piano apocalypse. And then there’s Miriam’s angelic voice pulling it all together and tearing it apart with pivotal moments drawn from her indie-folk beginnings.
