Scratchy blues-folk with small town vibes and social analysis.
If you listen to the first three albums, from the 2022 John Zorn-produced debut O, Sun to the avant-garde SUN released last year, you would never think that EYES FULL comes from the same musician. Because the American Zoh Amba left out the saxophone and jazz for the new work and completely reoriented himself. Still playful and experimental, Amba moves into new territory on this blues-folk album, not only in terms of genre but lyrically.
The 13 songs on the songwriting debut tell 13 stories from rural Tennessee. It is a kind of social report about the realities of life that are often sobering and characterized by grief, generational conflicts and questions of faith. Amba – although she grew up there herself – looks at everything from a certain distance. At the age of 17, Amba moved first to San Francisco and then to New York City.
Clear storytelling, harsh and grating vocals with a broad southern dialect and a constantly present acoustic guitar are accompanied by drums, electric guitar and bass. This creates a personal, socially critical and musically daring songwriting debut.