Tag: Sophie Jamieson Choosing

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sophie Jamieson Shares Gorgeous “Camera”

London-based singer/songwriter Sophie Jamieson released two EPs in 2020 that caught the attention of Bella Union Records, who quickly signed the rising British artist, and released her Steph Marziano-produced full-length debut, 2022’s Choosing.

Choosing was a subtle reworking of the sound that Jamieson quickly established through her first two EPs. While her first two EPs flirted with playful experimentation, her full-length debut featured a much organic, simpler and intimate sound, centered around arrangements of live drums, bass, cello and piano that are roomy enough for Jamieson’s mesmerizing vocals to take the spotlight.

Jamieson described the songs on her first two EPs as “black holes” and while Choosing manages to cover similar thematic ground, it never takes its eyes from what lies beyond, never fully releases its grip when its telling her to let go. The album is deeply personal documentation of a journey from the painful rock bottom of self-destruction to a safer place, and imbued with a faint light of hope. Focusing on the bare bones of each song, the album’s material is influenced by songwriters like Elena Tonra, Sharon Van Etten and Scott Hutchinson, and sees Jamieson singing openly about longing and searching, of trying, failing and trying again, and the strength of love in its varying forms. 

“The title of this album is so important,” Sophie explained. “Without it, this might sound like another record about self-destruction and pain, but at heart, it’s about hope, and finding strength. It’s about finding the light at the end of the tunnel, and crawlingI towards it.” 

Ultimately, Choosing asks the listener to look deep within themselves and to show them that they can take whatever pain they’re experiencing, and choose, to some extent, how they let it affect them; whether they let it burn them down or whether they choose to look it straight in the face. “The songs are bursting with something, and that energy just needs to be reshaped into love for the self,” Jamieson explained. “I can say this from a place of having learned now how to love and care for myself. The love that reverberates through this album is like the green shoots of something I have happily learned to nurture into my present day.” 

The London-based artist’s highly anticipated sophomore album, the Guy Massey and Jamieson co-produced I still want to share is slated for a January 17, 2025 release through Bella Union. The album is a deeply personal reflection on the cynical nature of loving and losing, the anxiety we can’t keep out of our relationships and the perpetual longing for belonging that drives us to keep trying and failing, to find a home in others. The album sees Jamieson lifting the lid on the roots of how we love and digs in even deeper, leaning into our deficiencies but from a stronger, healthier place that is much less afraid of the pain that inevitably comes with feeling everything.

Sonically, the album’s material is reportedly much more exploratory, playful and detailed with a richer palette. The raw emotion of Jamieson’s songwriting and delivery is joined by new instrumentation, including omnichord, harmonium and sub-bass, as well as rich string arrangements by Josephine Stephenson that help to weave a yearning connection through the beating heart of the album’s material. “There’s a lot of warm autumnal colors, and then more glittery, dark, starry skies. Something about it all has really come together to illustrate some things that I didn’t know I needed to articulate in this way”, Jamieson explains.

I still want to share‘s second and latest single, album opening “Camera” is a brooding and stunningly gorgeous song which begins with Jamieson accompanying her expressive delivery with strummed acoustic guitar that swells and builds up with a cinematic arrangement of strings, shuffling drums and twinkling keys to a slow-burn fade out. The song captures a narrator, who’s slowly unraveling with a woozy precision.

“I wrote this song when my heart was broken and I was trying to hold everything when it didn’t want to be held,” Jamieson explains. “I wanted to be able to draw an outline around the pieces, fit them into a frame. Something in me knew that I’d find some peace if I just let things stay blurry, but everything in me wanted to find some focus. This song is the yearning, wrenching of trying to define a love that was less simple, more layered and less graspable than I could accept.”

Co-directed and shot by Malena Zavala and Sophie Jamieson in Brecon Beacons, Wales, the accompanying video for “Camera” features dazzlingly cinematic imagery.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sophie Jamieson Shares Hauntingly Gorgeous “Boundary”

Rising British singer/songwriter Sophie Jamieson released two EPs back in 2020 that caught the attention of Bella Union Records, who signed Jamieson — and then released her Steph Marziano-produced full-length debut Choosing today.

Choosing is a subtle rework of the sound that Jamieson quickly established through her first two EPs: While those EPs flirted with playful experimentation, Choosing‘s sound is simultaneously more organic, simpler and intimate, centered around arrangements of live drums, bass, cello and piano, which are roomy enough for Jamieson’s mesmerizing vocals to take the spotlight.

Jamieson has described the songs on her first two EPs as “black holes,” and while Choosing manages to cover similar ground, it never takes its eyes from what lies beyond, never fully releases its grip when its telling her to let go. The album is deeply personal documentation of a journey from the painful rock bottom of self-destruction to a safer place, and imbued with a faint light of hope. Focusing on the bare bones of each song, the album’s material is influenced by songwriters like Elena Tonra, Sharon Van Etten and Scott Hutchinson, and sees Jamieson singing openly about longing and searching, of trying, failing and trying again, and the strength of love in its varying forms. 

“The title of this album is so important,” Sophie explains. “Without it, this might sound like another record about self-destruction and pain, but at heart, it’s about hope, and finding strength. It’s about finding the light at the end of the tunnel, and crawling towards it.” 

Ultimately, the album asks the listener to look deep within themselves and to show them that they can take whatever pain they’re experiencing, and choose, to some extent, how they let it affect them; whether they let it burn them down or whether they choose to look it straight in the face. “The songs are bursting with something, and that energy just needs to be reshaped into love for the self,” Sophie explains. “I can say this from a place of having learned now how to love and care for myself. The love that reverberates through this album is like the green shoots of something I have happily learned to nurture into my present day.” 

“The few times I have listened to this album from start to finish, I have realized that there is a huge amount of love in it,” Jamieson says “I think there is a strong potential for real, healthy, healing love. It’s like a line of relief that runs along through all the songs. It’s never unleashed, it hasn’t yet learned how, but it’s present in an underlying tension and potential.” 

Earlier this year, I wrote about Choosing‘s devastating first single “Sink.” Centered around a sparse arrangement of twinkling and wobbling keys that seem simultaneously childlike and ironically detached, skittering boom bap-like drumming, “Sink” is roomy enough for Jamieson’s weary and heartbroken delivery to take the lead. The song is an unflinchingly honest look at someone on the edge — and not quite know what’s next. “Sink” was written as a love letter to alcohol amid an increasing dependence upon it, informed by a recurring image Sophie had of herself on a desert island, a quiet, calm place that was just too good to be true. “’Sink’ presents a purgatory between being able to choose and begging not to be pulled under,” Sophie explains. “It’s about teetering on the edge, looking over the cliff, asking not to be pulled over before realising you only have to choose not to jump.” 

The album’s latest single “Boundary” is a slow-burning, meditative and sparsely arranged track centered around strummed guitar, and subtle bursts of keys before paired with Jamieson’s gorgeous, achingly yearning vocal. The first time I heard this one, I stopped dead in my tracks, stopped everything and got lost in her

“This song comes from a kinder place than some of the others on this record. It steps back and acknowledges self-inflicted pain and the repeated effort to heal,” Jamieson says. “It’s about trying and failing, knowing there is something you’re trying to grasp but that keeps slipping out of your reach. The journey isn’t smooth or pretty but it’s hopeful, and the light starts to creep in once you choose to be honest with yourself.”

Directed, edited and shot by Jamieson, the accompanying video captures both the endless passage of time and of change. “I filmed this video over 4 months, between February and May 2022 in my garden, on my cycle journey to work through South East London and several stops along that journey,” Jamieson says. “It started with an interest in how things change, the idea that nothing ever lasts and the healing effect of time – and ended up being a joyous documentation of spring unfolding. The process of making this video has been incredibly healing, and an act of choice in itself – to stop and look up, to find beauty and become intimate with how time moves nature. I noticed details as though I’d never seen them in my life, things I’d always struggled to see from the pit of self-destruction.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sophie Jamieson Shares Devastating “Sink”

Rising British singer/songwriter Sophie Jamieson released two EPs back in 2020 that caught the attention of Bella Union Records, who signed Jamieson — and will be releasing her full-length debut, the Steph Marziano-produced Choosing. Slated for a December 2, 2022 release, Choosing is a subtle rework of the sound that Jamieson quickly established through her first two EPs: While those EPs flirted with playful experimentation, Choosing‘s sound is both more organic simpler and intimate, featuring arrangements of live drums, bass, cello and piano, which are roomy enough for the British singer/songwriter’s mesmerizing vocals to take the spotlight.

Jamieson has described the songs on those two EPs as “black holes” and while Choosing covers similar ground, it reportedly never takes it eyes from what lies beyond, never fully releases its grip when everything is telling her to let go. The album is a deeply personal documentation of a journey from the painful rock bottom of self-destruction to a safer place, imbued with the faint light of hope. Focusing on the bare bones of each song, the album’s material is influenced by songwriters like Elena Tonra, Sharon Van Etten and Scott Hutchinson, and sees Jamieson singing openly about longing and searching, of trying, failing and trying again, and the strength of love in its varying forms.

“The title of this album is so important,” Sophie explains. “Without it, this might sound like another record about self-destruction and pain, but at heart, it’s about hope, and finding strength. It’s about finding the light at the end of the tunnel, and crawling towards it.” 

Ultimately, the album asks the listener to look deep within themselves and to show them that they can take whatever pain they’re experiencing, and choose, to some extent, how they let it affect them; whether they let it burn them down or whether they choose to look it straight in the face. “The songs are bursting with something, and that energy just needs to be reshaped into love for the self,” Sophie explains. “I can say this from a place of having learned now how to love and care for myself. The love that reverberates through this album is like the green shoots of something I have happily learned to nurture into my present day.”

“The few times I have listened to this album from start to finish, I have realized that there is a huge amount of love in it,” Jamieson says “I think there is a strong potential for real, healthy, healing love. It’s like a line of relief that runs along through all the songs. It’s never unleashed, it hasn’t yet learned how, but it’s present in an underlying tension and potential.” 

Choosing‘s first single, the devastating “Sink” is centered around a sparse arrangement of twinkling and wobbling keys that seem both childlike and ironically detached, skittering boom bap-like drumming that’s roomy enough for Jamieson’s weary and heartbroken delivery to take the lead. The song is an unflinchingly honest look at someone on the edge — and not quite knowing what’s next. “Sink” was written as a love letter to alcohol amid an increasing dependence upon it, informed by a recurring image Sophie had of herself on a desert island, a quiet, calm place that was just too good to be true. “’Sink’ presents a purgatory between being able to choose and begging not to be pulled under,” Sophie explains. “It’s about teetering on the edge, looking over the cliff, asking not to be pulled over before realising you only have to choose not to jump.” 

Co-directed by Jamieson and Rosamund Bullard and filmed and edited by Bullard, the accompanying video follows Jamieson taking a train to the coast. We follow her as she walks along the shore, looking at the horizon in front of her. “This song began as a love letter to alcohol, written from the cusp of falling into addiction. I had begun to trust this tool but I could feel it turning on me, like a bad friend,” Jamieson says of the song and accompanying video. “I knew I was close to losing control over it, and realized that I had to choose whether to fall in or not. This song exists at the brink of choice: whether to abandon yourself, or whether to make the colossal effort to rescue yourself. The video, like the song, approaches the edge – the tantalizing mystery and comfort of it, the openness of possibility and also the quiet knowledge of the dead end. The shoreline is that edge: beautiful, eerie, infinite, and empty.”