Potter's Daughter comprises that rarest of combinations, mother and son, namely Dyanne Potter Voegtlin on vocals, piano and keyboards and Jan-Christian Vögtlin on bass, guitar, and drum programming. The US-based duo released their debut album, The Blind Side, in 2018 after which came their singles Blood And Water, featuring Annie Haslam (Renaissance), and This Winter's Child. Theirs is a very contemporary sound, the focus being on the classically trained Voegtlin's distinctive vocals and cultured keyboards, supplemented by Vögtlin's skilful playing and programming. Their latest EP Casually Containing Rage opens with To My Love. Which is a revisitation and reworking of a track on their debut album, which also features Potter's Daughter's other regular musicians, Amit Chatterjee on guitar, Patrick Carmichael on drums and Tom Borthwick on soundscaping. The powerful, resonant voice of Voegtlin really cuts through, accompanied by just a guitar and swish of a cymbal. Her voice moves up the scale as the track develops, the bass and drums coming in before a big earthy guitar solo gives it extra texture. Echoey vocals sung acapella end this haunting track. Accidentally Like A Martyr is a beautiful ballad written by Warren Zevon and in Voegtlin's careful hands, becomes a poignant song about lost love and loneliness, her plangent voice accompanied very sparsely by piano and guitar. Adding their voice to the current world situation, especially in the USA, We Could Be offers a heart-felt narrative on the events of 2020, particularly the death of George Floyd for which David Greene provides a spoken NPR radio broadcast. A jazzy Rhodes piano keyboard introduction and understated drums underpin the song during which Voegtlin repeatedly opines “We could be better than this, we could be so much better than this.” There is an accompanying video, which really hammers home the story and narrative of the song -freedom and unity. Arty, sophisticated and totally compelling, this was one of my favourite finds of 2020, and the new album, which is currently underway, promises many more delights to come. **** Alison Reijman Where to buy? |
