Back in April Fenne Lily released the excellent album Big Picture. This week she announced an expanded edition of the album with five additional tracks. The first we can hear is "Hollywood and Fear." This new song would have fit in perfectly with the ten songs already on the album. Lily just has this unique and compelling version of alt-folk meets mainstream folk-pop. A song like "Hollywood and Fear" is just so close to being on the mainstream side of things, but Lily just has her own unique spin on the genre and keeps it all her own. It's also what makes you need to listen when one of her songs are on, and why you don't want to stop listening.
You can listen to "Hollywood and Fear" below. Big Picture (Expanded Edition) is due out November 10 on Dead Oceans, and is available for pre-order here. For more on Fenne Lily, check out the artist on Facebook and Instagram.
"In My Own Time," the latest from Fenne Lily, is an achingly beautiful and delicate song that borders on folk. Something about "In My Own Time" sounds completely traditional and classic, but it also sounds completely modern at the same time. It sounds like a mix of traditional folk and Irish music, but also not traditional at all. I think the traditional feel comes from Lily's vocals, which ooze a classic sound, while the instrumentation aligns more with modern neo-folk and indie rock. This is a gorgeous song that is completely captivating in its simplicity.
Fenne Lily says of her new single and video:
"This song’s about the weight of stasis — about time moving too quickly and too slowly and every mistake feeling both permanent and inconsequential. When it came to writing this video concept, I wanted it to reflect the twisted aspects of a love that’s found in the midst of chaos and the subsequent feeling of being inanimate in your own story. All that, in the style of Terminator 2.”
You can watch the video for "In My Own Time" below. Big Picture is due out April 14 on Dead Oceans. The album can be pre-ordered here. For more on Fenne Lily, check out the artist's website. Upcoming tour dates can be found below the video.
Sat. Apr. 15 - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club ^ Sun. Apr. 16 - Dublin, IE @ Workman’s Club ^ Tue. Apr. 18 - Glasgow, UK @ St Luke’s ^ Wed. Apr. 19 - Manchester, UK @ YES ^ Thu. Apr. 20 - London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall ^ Fri. Apr. 21 - Bristol, UK @ Trinity ^ Sun. Apr. 23 - Brighton, UK @ Patterns ^ Mon. Apr. 24 - Brussels, BE @ AB Club ^ Tue. Apr. 25 - Amsterdam, NL @ Bitterzoet ^ Thu. Apr. 27 - Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher ^ Fri. Apr. 28 - Copenhagen, DK @ VEGA Ideal Bar ^ Sat. Apr. 29 - Berlin, DE @ Frannz ^ Mon. May 1 - Munich, DE @ Ampere ^ Tue. May 2 - Cologne, DE @ Stadtgarten ^ Wed. May 3 - Paris, FR @ FMR ^ Thu. May 11 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room * Fri. May 12 - Felton, CA @ Felton Music Hall * Sat. May 13 - San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall * Mon. May 15 - Seattle, WA @ Neumos * Tue. May 16 - Portland, Oregon @ Aladdin Theater * Wed. May 17 - Vancouver, BC @ Hollywood Theatre * Fri. May 19 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court * Sat. May 20 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater * Mon. May 22 - Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck * Tue. May 23 - Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line * Wed. May 24- Milwaukee, WI @ Back Room at Colectivo Coffee * Thu. May 25 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall * Fri. May 26 - Kalamazoo, MI @ Bell’s Eccentric Cafe * Sat. May 27 - Toronto, ON @ The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern * Tue. May 30 - Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Artspace * Wed. May 31 - Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair * Fri. Jun. 2 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg * Sat. Jun. 3 - Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer * Sun. Jun. 4 - Washington, DC @ Black Cat * Mon. Jun. 5 - Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall * Tue. Jun. 6 - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West * Wed. Jun. 7 - Nashville, TN @ The Basement East * Fri. Jun. 9 - Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge * Sat. Jun. 10 - Fort Worth, TX @ Tulips * Sun. Jun. 11 - Austin, TX @ The Parish * Tue. Jun. 13 - Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf * Thu. Jun. 15 - Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge * Fri. Jun. 16 - West Hollywood, CA @ Troubadour * * = co-headline with Christian Lee Hutson ^ w/ Naima Bock
Fenne Lily has relocated from the UK to New York, and her upcoming album was written over the course of a relationship. The first single off that album, "Lights Light Up," was written during the better part of a relationship but recorded after the relationship ended. It gives the song this odd melancholy that you normally don't get in a love song. Fenne Lily has created a song that is a lovely and insightful singer/songwriter track. It's mostly straightforward and mainstream, but Lily gives it this unique quality with these quiet and kinda sorta twangy guitar licks over her intimately sung vocals. We've been fans of hers for a while, but something feels special about this particular release.
Fenne Lily says of her new single:
“I’d never really written about love in the present tense before this, but even though I was still in love and not thinking about the end, there was something else going on subconsciously that led to a song about moving on before the moving on had begun. When it came time to record, the band and I had been playing it live for a while and it’d become something joyful and positive, but when I started recording vocals, the lyrics made me cry. By that point the song was over a year old and I thought those wounds had healed but I guess it hurt to admit I’d been letting go of something while still trying to hold on."
You can watch the video for "Lights Light Up" below. Big Picture is due out April 14 on Dead Oceans. The album can be pre-ordered here. For more on Fenne Lily, check out the artist's website. Upcoming tour dates are below the video.
Sat. Apr. 15 - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club Sun. Apr. 16 - Dublin, IE @ Workman’s Club Tue. Apr. 18 - Glasgow, UK @ St Luke’s Wed. Apr. 19 - Manchester, UK @ YES Thu. Apr. 20 - London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall Fri. Apr. 21 - Bristol, UK @ Trinity Sun. Apr. 23 - Brighton, UK @ Patterns Mon. Apr. 24 - Brussels, BE @ AB Club Tue. Apr. 25 - Amsterdam, NL @ Bitterzoet Thu. Apr. 27 - Hamburg, DE @ Nochtspeicher Fri. Apr. 28 - Copenhagen, DK @ VEGA Ideal Bar Sat. Apr. 29 - Berlin, DE @ Frannz Mon. May 1 - Munich, DE @ Ampere Tue. May 2 - Cologne, DE @ Stadtgarten Wed. May 3 - Paris, FR @ FMR Thu. May 11 - Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room * Fri. May 12 - Felton, CA @ Felton Music Hall * Sat. May 13 - San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall * Mon. May 15 - Seattle, WA @ Neumos * Tue. May 16 - Portland, Oregon @ Aladdin Theater * Wed. May 17 - Vancouver, BC @ Hollywood Theatre * Fri. May 19 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court * Sat. May 20 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater * Mon. May 22 - Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck * Tue. May 23 - Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line * Wed. May 24- Milwaukee, WI @ Back Room at Colectivo Coffee * Thu. May 25 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall * Fri. May 26 - Kalamazoo, MI @ Bell’s Eccentric Cafe * Sat. May 27 - Toronto, ON @ The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern * Tue. May 30 - Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Artspace * Wed. May 31 - Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair * Fri. Jun. 2 - Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg * Sat. Jun. 3 - Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer * Sun. Jun. 4 - Washington, DC @ Black Cat * Mon. Jun. 5 - Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall * Tue. Jun. 6 - Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West * Wed. Jun. 7 - Nashville, TN @ The Basement East * Fri. Jun. 9 - Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge * Sat. Jun. 10 - Fort Worth, TX @ Tulips * Sun. Jun. 11 - Austin, TX @ The Parish * Tue. Jun. 13 - Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf * Thu. Jun. 15 - Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge * Fri. Jun. 16 - West Hollywood, CA @ Troubadour * * = co-headline with Christian Lee Hutson