just let me in

real photo of her mum in bath

i've written and deleted this introductory paragraph about 18 times. originally, it was about christmas stuff. then it was a big moan about me feeling emo every weekend. after that, it was a look at my delivery from bear hug and then it was back to my bitter rant about adult life making me tired and poor all the time. but instead of all of that, i've realised that i never did finish up my affectionate look at the musical stylings of gabrielle aplin. so let's have a look at her "home" EP and talk about why it's so good, okay?

"what the fuck is that song?" and "what the fuck is that like?"

aplin's "never fade" EP was lovely and a definite progression from her debut. it sounded as though "home" would be the end of her EP trilogy and the beginning of a new chapter for her - the debut album. turns out, she went out with a bang because #3 is the best of all three and here's why. it's mitch cole's guide to:

"why gabrielle aplin is wonderful" 

home

outline: acoustic guitar and piano makes it sound like nothing's changed for aplin but really, this is something so different. it's bigger and better than any of her previous work: a heartfelt, mature and honest look at spreading your wings. 

salient point: at about the 3 minute mark when the drums come. 

best lyric: "i'm a phoenix in the water, a fish that's learned to fly. i've always been a daughter but feathers are meant for the sky."

keep pushing me

outline: AMAZING SONG ALERT. this is bouncy from the get-go and sounds a lot more like the gabrielle we'll learn to love. it's a bold pop song in comparison to her acoustic-folk which is absolutely fine with us. a ballsy middle finger to all the wankers we're better off leaving behind.

salient point: the subtle and choral middle eight juxtaposed with the "stop breathing down my neck. do you understand me yet?" lyric. 

best lyric: "i can't stay but i won't leave. some twisted sense of loyalty."

out on my own

outline: track #3 starts off with some whistling but it quickly picks up to another classic aplin song about growing up and moving on. it's easy to see that this has become her party trick - writing perfect acoustic pop songs about struggling with adolescence. 

salient point: all of the choruses. they literally sound like music to strut down the street to. 

best lyric: "and i've got to leave, write my own tragedies, keep my old bridges there to burn." 

romeo must die

outline: another semi-bitter but perky song about heartbreak and boys being dickheads. there comes a point in the song where you realise just how far she's come since her first EP. there's obvious confidence in the vocals and lyrics and the production values are above and beyond anything she's released before.

salient point: the "WOOO-OOOAAAH"s in the background. actually, all of the background male vocals.

best lyric: "you used to write me letters, you'd send me records in the post like "born to run" by springstein. you knew the songs i loved the most."

let me in

outline: AMAZING SONG ALERT. this remains one of my favourite aplin tracks to date. a piano driven ballad about being stuck on the outside, frightened of what you might find. it's very well written and composed, not necessarily revolutionary, but a big turning point in gabrielle's evolution as an artist. 

salient point: "out in out in out in out in out in just let me in" at the end as it's fading out is good. so good. 

best lyric: all of them. there are too many flawless metaphors to choose from. 

"home" is probably the easiest of all three EPs to find. it's also the best one and a brilliant bridge between early EP work and finished album material. next stop is her big break (i.e the john lewis advert) which takes us to debut album time. not sure if i'll be reviewing every song but there's a few which basically changed my life so prep your bodies for that one xo