ANCHR's Artist of the Week: Squirrel Flower
Photo by Tonje Thilesen
You know how certain bands have that very particular signature sound where you can recognize one of their songs before the lyrics even kick in? Well, with Squirrel Flower— the project of vocalist, songwriter and musician Ella Williams— there’s a consistent air of experimentation and exploration of different energies and sounds in her music, leading to a completely different effect. Across the first Squirrel Flower EPs and debut album I Was Born Swimming, Williams delivers reflective lyrics and a sweeping vocal performance, lending varying timbres to her silky voice.
Back in April, Williams announced Squirrel Flower’s sophomore record entitled Planet (i), giving us the lead single “Hurt A Fly.” The track leans a little heavier than some of Squirrel Flower’s past releases, featuring distorted and frenzied guitar riffs and telling the story of manipulative lover switching back and forth between powerful emotions. Talking about the track, Williams says, “‘Hurt A Fly’ is me embodying a persona of gaslighting, narcissistic soft-boy type shit. The classic ‘sorry I acted violently, I'm not mad that you got upset at me, wanna hang out next week?’ I wanted to see what it was like to be a character trying to skirt around accountability. It's an angry and unhinged song.” Tune in below to experience the track in all its glory.
As for the rest of the album Planet (i), Williams says most of the songs were written ahead of the pandemic, but she spent a large part of quarantine demoing them in her bedroom. When it came time to safely record the studio versions of the tracks, Williams worked with producer Ali Chant out of The Playpen in Bristol, UK. Williams and Chant provided the backbone for most of the instrumentation on the record, but it remained collaborative with guest contributions (provided remotely) by the likes of Tenci's Jess Shoman, Tomberlin, Katy J. Pearson, Jemima Coulter, Brooke Bentham, and Williams’ family members.
Be sure to pre-order Planet (i) ahead of its June 25th release date here, and check out Squirrel Flower’s upcoming tour dates here. The majority of the shows are unsurprisingly sold out, but if you were lucky enough to snag tickets, Squirrel Flower will actually be playing two shows here in Chicago this weekend at Sleeping Village.