Alas de Liona
Spirals
I’ve always believed that you can hear the geography of a songwriter’s location. If they are truly dialed into their capabilities, you can hear it in their work. Case in point, Alas de Liona. She grew up in the Mohave Desert (look it up, kids), studied at UCSB and did a semester in Scotland that seemed to absolutely propel her career. In her work, you can feel the desolation and airiness of the desert, the marine layer of Santa Barbara, the fog and overcast skies of Scotland. Her unique voice, storytelling, chord choices and structure have gained her considerable attention in the UK with coverage from the BBC, opening slots for Rufus Wainwright and a host of engaging videos and gigs. Here’s our review of her latest track, “Spirals.”
Track starts with a 6- 5 4 1 progression from a muted organ / keyboard tone, underneath her poignant alto tone that takes the first phrase solo, and then adds a solid harmony on the second phrase. Lyrically, she pulls us into a journey of mistakes she’s made, “dark inside my head” and the use of reverb on her vocals gives off the perfect vibe. Love the change up in the melody on the back half of the first verse.
With the first chorus, we hear the full band drop in with great guitar and drum tones - very ethereal, perfectly suited for the title of the song. She sings of a careless girl, selfish to the core and the tones are lush. First progression is a 2- 5 6- 1, and then she hits us with a really great choice of the flat 7 chord after the first progression - what a great way to add some sonic depth to the track. Back half of the chorus brings another nice change in chords and the addition of some beautiful keyboard tones under a beautiful breakdown. We leave the first chorus with a razor of a guitar tone whose brief solo perfectly ties us into the start of the second verse. 1:53 into the track, we’ve on full scale sonic journey that is (thankfully) NOT adhering to any of the standard 3:00 pop/rock song rules. Dig it.
The intensity picks up with added drums and an 8th note pulse hidden in the background for the second verse. The production stays on point - perfectly matching the lyrical vibe of the spirals she’s taking us through. The added keyboard tones - dirty, and separately bell like - continue to create a soundscape that is reminiscent of the many places she’s lived. The repetitive vocal section that happens before the ending guitar solo serves as great plateau before we float off to the end. I honestly can’t think of another band that this reminds me of completely - sure, there’s elements of Radiohead and Sarah McLachlan, but there’s something about the structure of this particular song that I adore, but can’t quite define. Great work, stunning piece!
Make sure you scroll down to catch her socials and other work. Cascade is a favorite, it’s in the same space sonically as this one. Saturnine shows a folk side that we didn’t expect - she probably kills in this genre too. Great stuff Alas, we look forward to what you’ll be doing next!