Since we wrote about elkyn’s single, winter, the Leeds’ songwriter has followed it up with his first studio recording, if only it was alright now.

Music that fans of Elliott Smith or Villagers would fall for, Joseph Donnelly’s willingness to leave himself open means his songs connect right with the heart – but turning his back on the home recorded, lo-fi sounds of his previous work doesn’t mean any of the connection or spirit is lost.

These are elkyn’s Sound & Vision picks:

Three Albums That I love:

Dinosaur Pile-Up – Growing Pains

I’ve been mega lucky with brothers that have an exceptional taste in music, and this is one of the first things I remember them showing me that I fell in love with. I also fell in love with Matt Bigland; I just thought he was the most rockin’ dude ever (still do). It’s still one of my favourite albums to date – every time I listen, I wanna throw myself about and shout along.

Florist – If Blue Could Be Happiness

I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from this album for my own music. Especially the way they write lyrics and how personal it is. I love it – with all the questions and confessions and speaking in the first person, then as soon as they say ‘we’ I feel like im a part of it.

Then there’s the pads and synths and ethereal sounds floating about, which make it something else. Everytime I listen, I can pick out a different flutter somewhere in the soundscape. Florist was my go to for the last two years of uni. I was either walking to uni, listening to it, skipping uni and listening to it or breaking down from uni and listening to it.

Lomelda – Hannah

Not sure how many times I’ve sat in my room over the last few months and listened to Hannah in full, but it’s a lot. Feel like this album came at the perfect time. Just when I thought the pandemic was gonna get the best of me, I got to listen to this and feel something for 40 minutes. This album is special, and I’m not 100% sure why yet but I’ll figure that out.

A Film that I have watched over and over:

Lord of The Rings

I know it’s probably cheating choosing a trilogy, but I don’t think there’s been a year in the last ten that I haven’t watched the whole of the LOTR trilogy. There’s something about watching the story arc of Aragorn go from Strider to the King of Gondor that makes me weep. I’ve spent so many Christmases hidden away watching it with my brothers, or binging it on family nights with my mum too, or getting friends over to watch all three extended editions in a row. I always have a map of middle earth in my room and my replica of Anduril, The Flame of the West sat by my bed.

A Book I love to go back to:

David Gemell – Legend

I read this book not too long ago and it’s epic. I’m a massive sucker for anything fantasy, probably due to my love of Lord of the Rings, and it didn’t disappoint. My older brother bought me it a while back, and, in the first lockdown, I finally got round to reading it. I spent a few days sitting in the sun and hardly put it down. The author started writing it when he’d been wrongfully diagnosed with a terminal illness and the book was pretty much a metaphor for it. He created the legend Druss, who comes down from his mountain to fight alongside an army of less than ten thousand against an army of five hundred thousand at Dros Delnoch. The whole book is so cool it gives me goosebumps thinking about it. Definitely well worth a read.

A Song that’s a constant on my playlists:

Big Thief – Mythological Beauty

This song always finds itself at the top of my on repeat playlist on Spotify. Adrianne Lenker is one of my favourite songwriters and this song, for me, is perfect. I couldn’t ever pick anything out I wasn’t sure of or didn’t like. Every element is perfect.

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