Portland, Oregon-based singer-songwriter Haley Heynderickx follows up 2018’s sublime ‘I Need to Start a Garden’ with ‘Seed of a Seed’, an album that – you can see this from the title – again takes inspiration from nature and our surroundings. It’s a record that Haley says honours everything from flowers and friends to forests and fantastical dreams while fighting to make things better…
‘Gemini’ opens the album in an insular, quieter tone as Haley sings about being the ‘woman in the corner’ who lacks both communication and cooperation. She also talks about avoiding people over intricate, folksy guitar work. ‘Foxglove’ follows with a darker yet melodic yet darker edge and instantly relatable, world-weary lyrics: ‘We grow tired over and overthinking’.
The title track is in a more reflective space as as Haley tries to navigate her way through the modern day and its ‘consumer flood’: ‘Did my parents know better? No, but they tried’. The strings add extra depth as Haley pines for a glass of wine, some free time and a ‘hand next to mine’. Flowers, hummingbirds and mussels are all references on the First Aid Kit-esque ‘Mouth of a Flower’, a song that gently laments the fact we ‘take, take, take’.
There’s an element of Owen or Elliott Smith in the twinkly emo guitar work of ‘Spit in the Sink’, while ‘Ayan’s Song’ is delivered in almost hushed tones as Haley warns ‘When you step outside, no one will catch you’. ‘Sorry Fahey’ is short and sweet with its celebration of a new day while ‘Swoop’ closes the record in emotive, almost bittersweet fashion.
‘Seed of a Seed’ is an album that finds Haley Heynderickx growing her sound into something that is both tender and powerful.
