Ones To Watch 2011: Delta Maid
aaamusic | On 23, Nov 2010
Following support slots with Ray LaMontagne, Martha Wainwright, Ellie Goulding and with a 17 date UK tour with Seth Lakeman on the horizon, Delta Maid is readying her debut album, ‘Outside Looking In’, for release on March 14th 2011.
Packing a hipflask full of Patsy Cline, Bessie Smith and soul-studded country blues, this Liverpudlian singer songwriter has harnessed the authentic sound of the Deep South of America.
After this summer’s sumptuous ‘Broken Branches’ EP – which was part recorded at Liam Watson’s legendary analogue Toe Rag Studios – Delta has been recording and co-producing her first ever album in her hometown.
Drawing parallels between the down home lyrics of delta blues and her own upbringing in Liverpool, Delta’s life isn’t as far removed from the Mississippi-based music that has inspired her as you might think. “There’s something really honest about it,” explains Delta. “It’s not convoluted in any way. I feel that’s what Liverpool’s got in common with delta blues, because there’s a lot of honesty there – we tend to wear our hearts on our sleeves. A lot of the language, believe it or not, is quite similar.”
Even though she’s never been to the Deep South, Delta has sonically hitchhiked her way cross-country, from Laurel Canyon down to Louisiana and through the capital cities of country and blues – Nashville and Memphis – via the grooves in her exhaustive record collection.
Lead single ‘Of My Own’ – released March 7th – is a country fried hip shaker which sits in glorious contrast to the sultry, laidback swing of ‘Running On Empty’. ‘Spend A Little Time’ brings a shot of sunshine – as well as advice for a lover – to the winter months while ‘The Changes Made’ is an album highlight, a tender acoustic ballad worthy of Dolly Parton, laced with Delta’s pure mountain vocal.
