Published by Mason Oldridge, 11 March 2024
Just a mere five months after the release of her debut album, singer-songwriter Holly Humberstone is back with a follow-up EP.
The record contains opening track and single Dive, title track Work in Progress, the upbeat and faster-paced Down Swinging and the acoustic closing track Easy Tiger. The silky chorus of Dive highlights Humberstone’s angelic voice, allowing you to feel like you’re transcending to a higher fantasy world. However, musically and lyrically, Down Swinging stands out from the others. The increased tempo catches your attention and there is a sense of fighting talk, referencing stress dreams and panic attacks before proclaiming “but I’m going down swinging”. Furthermore, Easy Tiger is a beautiful composition, aided by the stripped-back instrumentation.
Humberstone’s uniquely gentle vocals continue across this EP in what feels like a continuation of Paint My Bedroom Black. Also like her debut, there is a delicate blend of clean production and dreamy vocals.
With her own artistic vision about her and keeping at the same quality as her previous release, Humberstone has done it again on what is hopefully a stopgap between albums.
7/10