Laura Marling, the young folk singer from England, has a growing fan base outside of her native country (she has been on WFPK's regular rotation since at least her second album, I Speak Because I Can) and has achieved a first-rate critical reputation for her intricate arrangements, assured style, and wise-beyond-her years lyrics. She will play Zanzabar this coming Saturday on October 20, along with opener Bro. Stephen, at 8 p.m.
Marling is amazingly accomplished at the age of only 22 years. She has already won a Brit Award in 2011 (UK equivalent of a Grammy) as the Best Female Solo Artist and has been nominated twice for the prestigious Mercury Prize which is given to the best album of the year in Britain. As the daughter of a music teacher, she learned guitar as a youngster and also inherited an appreciation for folk music. Her songs have an elemental aspect, as if they could be centuries old, and yet they are also spiked with fresh, very much up-to-date sentiments and observations on love, struggle and death. Part of her appeal also, is the husky, darkly colored voice that you don't mistake for anyone else's -- a characteristic which calls to mind another inimitable voice -- Leonard Cohen.
Marling's latest album is A Creature I Don't Know, another very solid and mature group of songs, including the singles "All My Rage" and "Sophia." Her solo "Working Holiday Tour" brings her to Louisville Saturday, promising to be an excellent showcase of a bright, new talent in an intimate setting. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15, available at the door and on TicketFly.
Check out Laura Marling performing her song "Sophia" in the video below:
Photo Credit: Lucy Hamblin