Released in mid-August, Emma O’Reilly’s Sailing Home marks her first EP since FRACTURES (2016). Across four tracks, O’Reilly moves effortlessly between contemporary folk, experimental songwriting and atmospheric acoustic soundscapes, balancing the intimate and the expansive, the raw and the ethereal. Written between 2018 and 2021, the EP feels like a long-awaited return to a musical world that is both deeply rooted and constantly searching for new shapes.
The very first notes of the opening track, Only Love, take listeners familiar with indie folk music into surprisingly recognizable territory. The riff bears a striking resemblance to Bon Iver’s Skinny Love, and given the title, O’Reilly doesn’t exactly try to hide the connection. But this is by no means a copy. The song has a character of its own, with an engaging melody and, in particular, a beautiful piano part that keeps the arrangement constantly evolving. My favorite moment comes around the three-minute mark, when the repeated phrase “only love” is gradually transformed through various reverb/echo effects. The prominent piano also gives the track something of a Tori Amos feel.
The second track, River, takes a very different direction, evoking the more acoustic side of Fleetwood Mac or Joni Mitchell. It has an incredibly uplifting atmosphere and, at over five minutes, is given plenty of space to gradually unfold. Backing vocals and additional instrumentation slowly build the arrangement, with brass and other wind instruments entering along the way. In the second half, handclaps appear and the song suddenly takes on an almost gospel-like quality.
The third track, Aedh, is another five-and-a-half-minute piece that picks up on the gospel-choir atmosphere while also recalling some of the melodic sensibilities of Bon Iver. Its opening is perhaps the most experimental moment on the EP, with an ambient quality and an unusual combination of production and instrumentation. The first half works particularly well in this regard. Gradually, an acoustic guitar enters and the song begins to take a more recognizable shape. The second half becomes more traditionally song-oriented, while still retaining the experimental character established at the beginning.
The EP closes with Getting in the Way, once again built around adventurous, ambient production. At first, it almost feels as though distant church bells are being blurred into the background. Then a beautiful, simple acoustic guitar enters, accompanied by a memorable and deeply emotive melody. If I had to pick a single highlight from the EP, this would probably be it. It brings together everything I find most compelling about Sailing Home: adventurous production, strong melodies, fragility and genuine emotion. In the second half, experimental drums enter, giving the track a subtly electronic yet slightly jazzy character.
Sailing Home was recorded by Harry Smith of Anglia Sounds in Norwich during the 2021 COVID lockdowns, with additional recording by Jason Wick at Goat Pen Studios and Les Keye at Arad Studios in Dublin. Les Keye also mixed the EP, while mastering was handled by Liam Grant and Lavar Bullard, whose credits include Olivia Rodrigo, Enter Shikari, Jorja Smith and Glok.
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