Mariya May

Mariya May’s lyrical themes often dwell long on scenes of love, attraction, loss, and places in-between, adding to the classic throwback vibe and lending a heart-sweet quality to the overall feel. Songs like the swirly and melodic “Out Walking” (featuring TDRCo wunderkind Thomas Mudrick on back-up vocals), the Winehouse-esque “Like Birds in the Spring”, and the richly textured “Let it All Fall Free” offer up odes to that sweetest of sentiments, while others like the bass-driven reggae shuffle of “Open Up (It’s Cold)” deal reciprocally with the fallout of desire and faded love. Other tracks have a characteristically bubbly, carefree quality about them, such as the slightly country-battered jaunt of “Deep Into the Trees”, or else a gravity of their own, as with blue-eyed soul toe thumper and standout “I Remember”. Filling out the song roster are the dubbed-out shimmer of “From a Loft We Looked Across” and the melancholic beauty of “Bells Ring”. Mariya May's music is definitely not short on either vision or listenability, and many of the tracks here are well worth some repeat uptake into your earholes. (Reed Burnam)