Folk music has a new heroine : Lotta St Joan provides a comforting companion to those who struggle to navigate the treacherous waves of indecision

Backstory told by Must Be Mad Records
 

Berlin, Germany, has become the unexpected epicentre of singer-songwriter talent in Europe over the last couple of years, with the comparatively artist-friendly cost of living and the revival of Berlin’s pre-war and post-Wall art scenes drawing a wealth of international talent to this thriving well of musical activity. 

 

However, it is Germany’s very own Lotta St Joan that has established herself as the name on the tip of the tongue of the Berlin folk and singer-songwriter scene, earning herself extensive features on Germany’s major radio stations, signing with Kick The Flame Publishing and collaborating with new London & Berlin oriented label ‘Must Be Mad Records.’

 

Whilst female artists continue to dominate the folk revival, from Angel Olsen and Laura Marling to Sharon van Etten and Hayley Heynderickx, Lotta St Joan has crafted her own extraordinarily visceral universe. Her own brand of modern folk songs have a profoundly nostalgic sonic quality that encapsulates the earthy acoustic guitar tones of her early 60s forebears, set alongside string score that would feel at home in classic French cinema. Her effortlessly floating vocal and signature slow-motion vibrato peeks into the dreamlike timbre of Jeff Buckley in it’s soaring peaks and slips into an almost spoken word story telling in acute moments.

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The album journeys through the mind of a person who struggles with indecision and regrets, glorification of past relationships and how they affect the ability to commit to a new future. It explores both the suffering of the self and those close to her,  as well as the hope that springs from knowing the indecision that plagues her also leaves an infinity of possibilities for the future due to the nature of never fully committing to the key decisions life imposes upon her.

 

The warmth of the record is apparent from the opening track to the last - a long sought after tonal quality that places the songs in a magical melancholy as if performed under the blankets in an isolated woodland cabin in an almost childlike nostalgia. The opening track ‘Closer’ begins at a distance, a short prelude of contemplation before the expertly double tracked acoustic guitars rise to the surface and invite you into the glow of the album that ensues.

 

The desire for someone to relieve the protagonist from the pressures of needing to take ownership of her life, whether it be God, a parental guide, or a partner, is the underlying theme of the record, and as the white noise of each new song fades in we are given a new perspective that either tries to lead you out of the forest of confusion or deeper into it.

 

The story’s arc is complemented by a musical orchestration that ranges from bare-bones guitar and vocal live recordings to fully orchestrated strings, brass and a backing band of drums, guitars, piano and upright bass. Co-writing her scores with Hans Gnendinger and Producer Cameron James Laing and with musical arrangements that bring a homely familiarity to ground the grandiose orchestration, Lotta St Joan has managed to pull off a remarkable achievement in creating a record that brings a sweet sentimental 

 

Lotta St Joan’s first foray into her immersively folky world came in the form of a self-recorded debut album ‘Hands’ in 2021, but for this second album and the eleven exquisite songs it contains, she turned to the eminent Producer and former Universal Music artist Cameron James Laing, founder of Berlin’s musical treasure trove ‘The Famous Gold Watch Studios’(part recording studio and part elaborate labyrinth of speakeasys and film locations); a place once described as “the Brill Building for Berlin” and the creative home of countless Berlin artists.