ROZI PLAIN

Prize (Memphis Industries)

Prize from Rozi Plain begins as a delicately jubilant album before finding itself in haunting territory. It has the kind of sound you want to bask in; the regular rhythm of brush strokes on drums and small repeated guitar lines creating a seabed, above which intricate melodies travel weightlessly. Complicated’s steel drums place it firmly under the sea, though, and it becomes a little murkier after the first four tracks.

The album as a whole doesn’t venture too far from the comfort blanket of acoustic indie, stamped with Rozi’s questioning lyrics, sung with the lightest touch. But there’s something distinctive about the construction of a Rozi Plain song— a soothing quality to the repetition of those lovely little musical cells.

And she isn’t afraid to add splashes of intrigue, via celestial synths in Painted The Room, a fluttering harp in Help. Predominantly a touring artist – you can catch her in Cardiff on Thurs 2 Feb – Rozi frequently turns to friends for collaboration; Prize celebrates the familial sonic resemblance between Rozi Plain, This Is The Kit and Alabaster Deplume. 

words ROSANNA LEWIS