Shared Notes with Rae Isla and Elizabeth Wyld
Rae Isla
"Elizabeth's debut is just that, an introduction to who she is and what she can do.”
We had the pleasure of featuring Rae Isla a couple of months ago before the release of her album 'Another Life,' and we even spoke to her via IG live and got to know her a bit better. You can find that HERE.
'Another Life' was released in May of this year, and it's Rae's first full-length album. The ten-track project takes you on a journey depicting the end of a relationship and all that comes with it. As Rae examines her own life in this project, she doesn't lose sight of what it is to be a young queer woman who is more than comfortable with change. Perhaps that makes 'Another Life' so personal and relatable regardless of your sexuality or gender. As Elizabeth Wyld stated about Rae's new project, we also recommend listening to the album twice.
Notes on ‘Another Life’ from Elizabeth Wyld:
"Rae's album 'Another Life' is lush and layered from start to end. I've had the title song on repeat this week. I've been the narrator of this song before, staring at the plastic stars on my ceiling and pulling back the curtains on a romance that has lost its spark. Rae's outlook is not ugly or bitter but hopeful and gentle in her resignation. I recommend listening to the album at least twice. Once for the dreamy Midwestern vibe. Once for the words that tell a clear-eyed story. It would be Fleetwood Mac if Stevie Nicks grew up through the 90s. It's The Chicks on a mushroom trip. I am adding one of these to my "ultimate lesbian makeout playlist" next to Holly Miranda and Tomberlin."
Elizabeth Wyld
"Rae's album 'Another Life' is lush and layered from start to end.”
Similarly, we've also featured Elizabeth Wyld when we premiered the music video for her song "Virginia" and before the release of her debut album 'Quiet Year'. You can find that HERE.
Elizabeth Wyld is also in the realm of indie-folk and being personal with her music. Elizabeth is queer-identifying and often opens up about her experiences growing up gay in rural America. 'Quiet Year' started while Elizabeth was silent for six months after being diagnosed with unilateral vocal fold paralysis, which caused her career as an actress to come to a sudden stop. Six months in which she started writing lyrics, playing the guitar, and even embracing her sexuality. As Rae Isla so kindly said about the album, we also think 'Quiet Year' is excellently varied, intimate, and relatable.
Notes on ‘Quiet Year’’ from Rae Isla:
"Elizabeth's debut is just that, an introduction to who she is and what she can do. 'Quiet Year' feels perfectly varied, ranging from indie rock songs that should be on the soundtrack for a remake of Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist to percussion-laden driving music. But not the kind you space out listening to, instead the kind where you forget you're in a car and think about how your parents are doing back home. Some of her lyrics are ultra-specific, and others are more like broad brush strokes, but they feel very real and somehow familiar. I can picture the places she describes: a loud show, a sunny field, a diner with her dad, and the silent intensity in which the songs were born. I kept wondering who the "you" she talks to is, but by the end of the seven songs, it started to feel like it was me, the listener—or perhaps I just wished it were."
Written by Piera Lolandes