Colt is the debut album by Irish artist Hilary Woods, released in 2018 via Sacred Bones Records.
Hilary Woods is an artist known to many as the bassist of the Irish alt-rock band JJ72, with whom she played between 1996-2003 and whose debut album sold over half a million copies in Ireland and the UK. Following a break from music, Woods returned in 2013 under the moniker The River Cry, releasing one, self-titled album. Then, in 2014, she started releasing music under her own name, beginning with the EP Night.
Roll on four years and Woods releases Colt. Minimalist, atmospheric, haunting – all the good stuff, it’s a collection of songs befitting a slot at the Roundhouse, Twin Peaks.
This is particularly true of the track “Black Rainbow”, a deliriously beautiful and sad love song of delicate, emotive composition. On “Inhaler” we get a sense of loneliness and anxiousness right from the start with the lines “The light is dim but I am, I’m seeing, The air is thin but I am, I’m breathing”.
On “Take Him In” we meet someone torn by their own desire yet cautious of their lover’s possible deceit – have they changed or are they trying to pull the wool over my eyes?
A personal favourite on an album that explores what it is to be human so well is “Jesus Said”. A major departure from what came before it, Woods gives us all that she is. It’s ominous, mazey, conflicting and potent. We go from pondering our own identity to dancing reborn and carefree with each beat.
Regarding her DIY approach to art, Woods’ bio describes her as cultivating “processes that are in call and response to each other. Her evocative experimentalism and sonic excavations give way to the intimacy and tenderness of a deeply personal and intuitive songwriting.”
And, when speaking to the Irish Independent after the album’s release, Woods said: “It was a labour of love. “I played every instrument on this album and produced it, too, and I made it exactly as I wanted to. The only person I was answerable to was myself.”
More on Hilary Woods
Grab a copy of Colt over on Bandcamp and learn more about Hilary Woods and her upcoming shows on her website and Instagram.
G.M
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