Pictured: Holly Humberstone
At just 21 years old, UK-based Holly Humberstone has made a name for herself in the indie-pop-rock scene among the likes of artists like Phoebe Bridgers, HAIM, and Maggie Rogers. Among many of her recent accomplishments, one of the more notable is her landing the #2 spot on BBC’s “Sound of 2021”, a shortlist of artists predicted to “take 2021 by storm.”
Humberstone can credit some of her growing fanbase to an opening spot with Lewis Capaldi before the pandemic hit. But Humberstone’s music speaks for itself following the release of her six-song EP Falling Asleep at the Wheel in August 2020.
Humberstone’s sound is generally reflective of pop, but her emotionally raw lyrics and inclusion of strong guitar echoes grunge and dance-rock influences. Like many artists today, Humberstone’s EP blurs the standard genre lines and reflects an aesthetic that in my opinion, has something for everyone. Her tracks feel full of both gravity and lightness. With vocal layering, confident piano and guitar lines, and the occasional electronic component, Humberstone’s EP makes for a varied and magical experience.
The first song from the EP, Deep End, is characterized by a strong, warm guitar that crescendos through the song, culminating in a cathartic release. This stripped-down song includes dissonant harmonies and lyrics that lament a challenging time in her sister’s life. My favorite things about this song are the pre-chorus harmonies, and the abrupt ending of the song. Deep End is an intimate look at what it means to come of age and not know what the future holds.
Holly shifts from the more ambient tones in Deep End to a more rhythmic one in the title track of the EP, Falling Asleep At The Wheel. Falling Asleep At The Wheel is Holly Humberstone’s most streamed song and for good reason.This song has a great hook and introduces more fun electronic sounds as it progresses. It feels like the kind of song meant to be played in the car late at night.
Opening with a heavy bassline, Overkill discusses the back-and-forth nature of modern love and portrays the complicated emotions of wanting to tell someone how you feel, but fearing rejection. The chorus echoes, “Maybe this time I’ll / Say something / Something a little wild, out loud / Maybe this time I’ll / Say something / I’ve been feeling for a while, out loud.”
Drop Dead, the fourth song off of Holly’s EP returns to the more melancholic feel of Deep End. It takes the images from Overkill and intensifies the scene, showing that this relationship is not a good one, and yet “My ride or die / I’ll take your love / and tell myself it’s good enough / But you know and I know / One look and I drop dead.” Holly brilliantly articulates the complicated nature of toxic relationships; she speaks from experience.
Vanilla centers on more electronic drum sounds and a clear bass, telling of a relationship that has gone ‘lukewarm,’ “so dull and lifeless / oh so vanilla.” The song is full of echoey vocals and staticky guitar, that aid in reflecting the refrain “But the truth is, I have my best nights without you.”
The final track, Livewire, lets on that Holly Humberstone has intentionally ordered these songs to move back and forth between rhythmic, electronic, and gloomier reflective tunes. Livewire seems like the closing love letter to this EP. It is full of a sense of nostalgia and of having moved on from what was, “We grow up and we grow apart...But now it’s behind us.”
I would also recommend watching her short film on Youtube, “On the Run” in which she plays through the EP live in a kind of extended music video.
Holly Humberstone is one to watch in 2021.