Emily Wells
Mama Acoustic Recordings
Partisan Records
Street: 06.11
Emily Wells = Thao Ngyuen+ J. Tillman

If you haven’t yet given Emily Wells a listen, I would recommend starting with her 2012 release, Mama. Creating her own loops and beats, Mama is a unique blend of independent folk music with elements of hip hop and electronica, and her experimentation with her songs is awesome on multiple levels. In Acoustic Recordings, she’s stripped down those beats and opted to use only her voice and acoustic guitar. The result is an intimate perspective on her previous album, and this straightforward approach creates a placid listening environment, fit for winding down the evening (or daylight, depending on the schedule you’re on). While “Johnny Cash’s Mama’s House” was the highlight for me on 2012’s album, “Fire Song” and “Passenger” caught me in a surprisingly new way. The acoustic recordings also offer a more clear way to highlight her voice and understand her lyrics, which may give you more reason to sing along to her first release. –Brinley Froelich