Correigh: “Under The Influence” – a near perfect recording!

Correigh has been singing and writing songs with her two sisters for as long as she can remember. After studying musical theatre in 6th form, she made the natural progression and joined a band and then another band and then…in 2013 Correigh Killick met her musical partner Ben Amesbury who also hails from Buckinghamshire, UK as she does. They began to collaborate on songs that Correigh had already written, as well as tracks that Ben had been creating in his studio.

The eclectic mix of their different influences and Amesbury’s vast experience as a recording engineer completed the explosive formula with Ben’s deep and hard edged tracks benefitting from Correigh’s pop sensibilities.

The combo struck a 3 album deal with the newly found ‘DELETE’ label at the beginning of 2016, and without much ado we now find their latest EP “Under The Influence” right upon us. And this recording is near perfect. No other artist has used this genre and covers, as a medium for the emotional depth and consequence that Correigh achieves here.

Even those inclined to enjoy the flat-four thuds of traditional EDM stylings will be drawn into the chill pop melodicism of Correigh’s voice and the attention to detail and production displayed by Ben Amesbury’s arrangements. Where works by artists like Massive Attack began to explore the way that that timbre could blend with the conventions of electronica, Correigh fulfills and exceeds that earlier promise.

Conceptually, this is an electronic memoir of cover tracks originally performed by the likes of Coldplay, System Of A Down, Radical Face and Wilco. All of these songs have been stylistically, and perfectly rooted to the Balearic oasis and undisputed party mecca that is Ibiza, and specifically the sunset destination of Café Del Mar.

From the sultry opening track, “Don’t Panic” it is clear that Correigh possesses a spectacular range, but it’s the amount of emotion that’s important here; and she delivers it in spades. Every hitch, every inflection in her tones comes across as meaningful. Few artists are fortunate (or talented) enough to reach the artistic peak that this duo have hit with this record, so early on in their professional careers.

Not only is “Under The Influence” a great listening experience in and of itself, it is one of those rare popular recordings which seems to contain within its reworking of songs the zeitgeist of its era. Correigh’s voice on “Chop Suey”, is always cool yet suffused with suggestions of both warmth and deep emotion, developing to the point where she might be thought of as the aural equivalent of glamorous and suggestive.

Continuing, her range and technical proficiency never fail to impress, but what is most distinctive about her phrasing on this record is its wide ranging tension. Her voice can be simultaneously cool and seething with emotion whenever she wants, but she always remains distinguishingly elegant in her performances.

Listen to the epitome of whispering, airy cool, on “We’re On Our Way”, as opposed to the two tracks which came before. The difference may sound extremely subtle on the outside, but it is immensely diverse in terms of vocal tension from the inside.

Along the way, Ben Amesbury’s arrangements create a constant series of interlocking rhythms and sounds filled with an underlying, but electrifying energy which offer a perfect counterpart to Correigh’s singing. “Black Moon”, originally recorded and performed by Wilco just really stole my heart; it is the perfect culmination of this great chill pop, ambient, and almost trip-hop 4-track experience.

There can be no doubt in my mind that “Under The Influence” is a transcendental achievement, considering that these are remixes of cover songs. The duo of Correigh Killick and Ben Amesbury has pretty much made these songs their very own.

Don’t you wish all other artists put this much of effort and passion into their work? Simultaneously soulful, pulsating, aloof and yearning, “Under The Influence” conveys the ambience of our time and milieu. You can immerse yourself in the throbbing glow of its subtle magic while dreaming of the great White Isle.