Praise for previous work:
“a genuinely show-stopping sound” James Belfield – NZ Listener
“This is the sound of your new favourite band” – Simon Sweetman
“an extraordinary showcase of originality and musicality, which stands out in the current New Zealand landscape” – Barry Saunders, Warratahs
“whole-hearted, deep-hued, visceral tales in the Americana-country-folk-blues vein, with such beautiful warmth and fragility you’re hooked from the first glide of lap steel to the last soaring vocal phrase” -Lydia Jenkin, New Zealand Herald
Today, her third single ‘Salt, Sand Sea,’ is out now, pulsating with a raw, elemental energy that moves between tight sonic spaces and sparse open vistas. Ebony’s delicately soaring vocals create a captivating contrast against persistent rhythmic tension, making it a surefire hit for live shows. “It evokes ideas and values that carry a similar weight to the natural world,” says Lamb. “The line “Give me some more” is about wanting depth of character. While we sway about in popular culture, the elements – the salt, the sand, the sea – remain steadfast.”
Directed by Studio Elga, the accompanying video leans into Ebony’s photographic prowess. Shot on location in Muritai and Pariwhero/Red Rocks in Poneke/Wellington, the video is a dynamic performance of portraiture, with the splendour of nature showcasing her talented touring band – Hikurangi Schaverien-Kaa (Dawn Dyver, French for Rabbits) and Phoebe Johnson (Revulva, Dateline).
NZ Listener
About EBONY LAMB:
A captivating work of impressionistic memories, observations and intimate confessions, Ebony wrote her debut self-titled solo album while coming into prominence as an in-demand portrait photographer within New Zealand’s contemporary literature and independent music scenes. The release comes five years after her alt-country band, Eb & Sparrow, amicably parted ways in 2018.
Recorded on vintage analog studio gear and mastered to tape, EBONY LAMB finds collaborators Bic Runga and Cody Nielson placing Ebony’s distinct, fragile-but-firm voice within a cinematic confluence of jazz, folk, psychedelia, alt-country and ambient pop. Written over the last five years while coming to terms with the realities of a changing world, themes of gratitude, loss, acceptance and aspiration run through the album like a river, especially in the nocturnal groove of ‘My Daughter My Sister My Son’ and ‘Brother Get Me Home’.
From the album’s opening notes, Ebony expresses herself in non-judgmental terms, singing with a raw tenderness that draws listeners into her reflections on friendship (‘Drive Me Around’), the complexity and contradictions of success (‘Successful Feelings’), and connections in seemingly hopeless moments (‘Come, Put A Record On’). Yet while her songs can feel like she’s sitting just across from you, Runga and Nielson’s production imbues them with an expansive sensibility.
Spare, vivid and moving, EBONY LAMB is an album that captures a defining artistic leap from a talented artist coming into her own. Singing to herself and the listener, she implores us to continue reaching forward without losing sight of what we have and the elements of our lives that truly matter.
More About Ebony Lamb:
Ebony Lamb writes with a poetic voice and a vivid, surrealistic intimacy. The New Zealand singer-songwriter and photographer turns the minutiae of everyday life and the defining memories that stay with us into a rich melange of folk, jazz, soul, and ambient pop. The Wellington-based artist spent her formative years as a traveller, mother, and worker of many jobs, eventually co-founding the alt-country band Eb & Sparrow in 2010. Drawing comparisons to Gillian Welch, Cat Power and Neko Case, Ebony released three critically-acclaimed albums with the band before embarking on a solo career under her own name. Ebony has supported international and national acts such as Tiny Ruins, Nadia Reid, Marlon Williams, Beth Orton, Rodriguez, Bic Runga, Tami Neilson, Lawrence Arabia and more.
Ebony Lamb – EBONY LAMB
1. My Daughter My Sister My Son
2. Take My Hands At Night
3. Salt, Sand Sea
4. Midnight Is My Name
5. Swim To Me
6. Drive Me Around
7. Successful Feelings
8. Come, Put A Record On
9. Brother Get Me Home
10. Star Confessor
Ebony Lamb – Ebony Lamb is out 20th October via Slow Time Records
Follow Ebony Lamb:
Official Site / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Youtube / Bandcamp
