Emma Ruth Rundle’s Marked for Death
Emma Ruth Rundle. From Facebook.
Emma Ruth Rundle is an American singer and songwriter. Her genres are ambient, folk, and post-rock. Her latest solo album, Marked for Death, was released by Sargent House. Her powerful voice and accompanying instruments wind together to create a unique and ethereal feel. Her voice and the instruments meld together, to create a soundscape that must be experienced to be understood.
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Her voice is smooth and fades into the music, becoming one with the rest of the song. But, when she needs to, her voice erupts into an emotional volcano propelled by powerful instruments. One thing I found interesting about this album is if I listened to all of the songs in order, one flows into the other so neatly the album could be considered one very long song.
My thoughts on her track list:
- Marked for Death: This song has an ethereal quality, with drawn out guitar and vocals that fade into the background.
- Protection: Harder drums are the mainstay of this song. It’s intense. Emma Ruth Rundle’s sings like a siren from the Greek myths.
- Medusa: Percussion heavy, this song it powerful enough to move even the hardest heart.
- Hand of God: A clear rhythm can be felt in this song as Emma Ruth Rundle’s voice reaches notes most mortals can only dream of.
- Heaven: This song’s lyrics are very evocative. Emma Ruth Rundle’s voice is soft and soothing, giving the song an aura of the peacefulness supposedly found in heaven.
- So, Come: In the beginning, it is Slow and sleepy, lacking in emphasis on instrumentals let Emma Ruth Rundle’s voice really shine. As the song progresses the instruments come back to pull power.
- Furious Angel: Despite this song’s name, it’s not a furious track at all. It’s slow and sleepy, with a gentle accompaniment by the band.
- Real Big Sky: I want to say that this sounds like an alternate-universe Radiohead song where the lead singer is Emma Ruth Rundle.
In conclusion, while I can appreciate that tremendous artistic talent of Emma Ruth Rundle. Her songs are structurally wonderful, and will appeal to people who like ambient music. I know it’s not for me, and that’s okay. I’d say she’s definitely an artist worth exploring.
