We’ve featured Emily Rowed on the site before. What struck me about her two singles I premiered was not just the music. Don’t get me wrong, the music is very good, full of thoughtful pop melodies and harmonies that just work. What grabs me about Rowed’s music is how real it feels. There is no barrier between what Rowed is thinking or experiencing and what we hear. Every emotion, every thought that comes through in the lyrics is completely honest. This extends to Rowed’s new album APRIL. It should come as no surprise that Rowed wanted to share even more, and we are thrilled to premiere the behind-the-scenes video telling the story of APRIL.
There’s nothing fancy about the video. Rowed sits in a car, parked outside an apartment complex. There are no cuts to the recording process, no studio shots, nothing but Rowed and the truth. Rowed’s photogarpher holding the camera asks her questions, and she answers them. She explains the origins of APRIL, what the album means to her, and shares a few laughs with her friend. It’s engaging because it’s so simple and unvarnished. In many ways, this video is similar to how Rowed approaches her music. She presents herself as she is to the world, and she trusts people will connect to it for that reason. She is absolutely right.
Rowed also told us about why she chose to share this story with fans. She says
“We were shooting the album cover that day and we were getting some shots while driving around in a ’68 something. The photographer, Mandy-lyn, had the idea of going back to the address where the album starts. We sat and talked about the stories that turned in ‘APRIL,’ that year, (from an April to an April) when everything changed. I don’t think there was a better place to explain what happened than sitting at the front door of where it all started. The project is about trusting your instincts and taking fat risks and the making of the album was exactly that – we wrote it from scratch in about 21 days. I wanted to share that story too.
APRIL is out today. You can listen to the album and check out the behind the scenes video below.
