Quite honestly, I’m still undecided as to whether or not I’m a music snob; however, I’m always on the lookout for a new artist or sound that will pique my interest. As I was browsing The New York Times website, I came across an article on a British-born folk artist, Laura Marling.  As a songwriter, I can relate to what she shared with the author of the article, John Pareles.  In essence, she shared that her songs are vaguely revealing of her personal struggles; and, she cannot force a song into existence.  She states, “I feel like I’m creeping closer to finding the situation that triggers songwriting, which is obviously an extreme of an emotion. But also it’s late at night, with half a bottle of wine missing.”  Although there is never any wine involved in my songwriting, I often feel that my best songs come about when I’m tired and fail to fully wrap my mind around the lyrics that are penned onto paper.

Furthermore, Marling describes her uncertainty in the creating process.  She says, “I feel sometimes that I’m in a constant state of being lost in translation, and I guess that’s why I write songs…sometimes I struggled to really know what I was saying in this album.”  Without expressing it in detail, Marling seems to be deeply connected to her songs, emotions, and inner thoughts, which help to fuel her albums and her enormous success at such a young age.  This makes me wonder- is such emotional unsteadiness worth the fortune?

Feel free to listen to her entire album, located to the left of the article.  The sounds are soothing, and her style is one that I admire, reminiscent of Jon Foreman’s independent projects (the Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer eps).