Lilac Everything (subtitled A Project By Emma Louise) is the third studio album by Australian recording artist Emma Louise, released on 14 September 2018.[4]
| Lilac Everything | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 14 September 2018 | |||
| Studio | Bear Creek Studio, Seattle | |||
| Label | Liberation Records | |||
| Producer | ||||
| Emma Louise chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Lilac Everything | ||||
Lilac Everything was written by Emma Louise during a visit to Mexico and recorded at Bear Creek Studio in Seattle with Tobias Jesso Jr. The album marks Jesso's first time working as a producer.[5]
During the final moments of recording, Emma Louise asked Jesso to dramatically pitch all of her vocals down with Emma Louise saying "It was honestly the most relieving decision I've ever made, musically. It just felt so right. I didn't even have to think about it. It made the album swell. It expanded. I think, creatively, I was able to do whatever I wanted."[5]
Emma Louise toured the album across Australia in September 2019.[6]
At the AIR Awards of 2019, the album was nominated for Best Independent Album.[7]
Singles
edit"Wish You Well" was released as the lead single on 15 June 2018, the same day as the album was announced. The song was described as "dramatic" by Amnplify[5] and "bold" by ABC.[1]
"Mexico" was released on 22 July 2018 as the album's second single. The track shares the same title as the birthplace for the album.[2]
"Falling Apart" was released on 27 August 2018, complete with a live video.[3] Emma Louise said "'Falling Apart' was the last song I wrote for the album. I was having a lot of conflicting feelings and went to a friend's party. I arrived too early and they had a piano. I wrote the song and then left before anyone arrived."[3]
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| The Music |    [8] |
Keira Leonard from The Music said "The change in pitch on Lilac Everything is so extreme that Emma Louise is unrecognisable from her past works; as we hear a far more androgynous vocal style rather than the feminine, higher pitch we're familiar with." adding "Once you get over the initial confusion of such a drastic change, you're in for one emotionally immersive ride. And immersed you will be, as the hypnotic Louise sings her poignant, universally-felt tales; making it a brave, gripping and influential release."[8]
Shaad D'Souza from Vice Magazine said "Lilac Everything bears no resemblance to vs Head vs Heart or Supercry whatsoever; rather than looking to electronics or alt-pop, Lilac Everything trades in wide, earthy soul and spare, romantic folk music, not entirely dissimilar in colour to Feist's Let It Die... The phrase 'radical departure' is overused and meaningless, so to put it plainly: Lilac Everything sounds nothing like Emma Louise."[9]
Happy Mag called the album "her most spellbinding work to date."[6]
Women in Pop said "The altered vocals bring previously unheard qualities and timbres to Emma Louise's voice, and are in many ways the perfect complement to the threads of melancholy that wind through the album." adding "Lilac Everything isn't your typical pop release, and is miles away from Emma Louise's previous electro-tinged releases, but it is perhaps because of that it is such a special release - pop music as art in the most engaging and moving way possible."[10]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wish You Well" |
| 4:10 |
| 2. | "Falling Apart" |
| 3:15 |
| 3. | "Just The Way I Am" |
| 3:33 |
| 4. | "Never Making Plans Again" |
| 3:40 |
| 5. | "Gentleman" | Lobb
| 3:39 |
| 6. | "Shadowman" |
| 3:42 |
| 7. | "Solitude" |
| 1:48 |
| 8. | "Mexico" |
| 4:11 |
| 9. | "A Book Left Open in a Wild Field of Flowers" |
| 3:54 |
| 10. | "When It Comes to You" |
| 4:02 |
Release history
edit| Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalogue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | 14 September 2018[11] | Liberation Records | LRCD0004 | |
| Australia | 14 September 2018[12] | LRLP0004 |
References
edit- ^ a b Newstead, Al (15 June 2018). "First Spin: Emma Louise shows off bold new sound on "Wish You Well"". ABC. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ a b Schietroma, Sarah (22 July 2018). "Emma Louise releases surprising new single "Mexico"". AAA Backstage. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ a b c "Emma Louise reveals "Falling Apart", complete with a live video!". The Partae. 27 August 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- ^ "Lilac Everything". Apple Music. 14 September 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ a b c "Emma Louise announces new album Lilac Everything". amnplify. 15 June 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Emma Louise announces the Lilac Everything tour, her first Australian shows in 2 years". Happy Mag. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "2019 AIR Awards Nominees". 28 March 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ a b "Emma Louise / Lilac Everything; A Project By Emma Louise". The Music AU. 12 September 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "An Energy Healer Gave Emma Louise a New Voice". vice. October 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "Emma Louise releases new album Lilac Everything". Women in Pop. 14 September 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "Lilac Everything; A Project By Emma Louise (CD)". JB HiFi. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "Lilac Everything; A Project By Emma Louise (White Vinyl)". JB HiFi. Retrieved 23 March 2021.