ALBUM REVIEW - GILLIAN RAE PERRY - Gillgil

---

GILLIAN RAE PERRY

Gillgil

Los Angeles, United States

Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Gillian Rae Perry released her latest project on August 26th of this year. Combining mixed emotions and a variety of genre styles sees Perry showcases her demons and champions in #Gillgil. #Gillgil is a collection of 10 songs that take listeners on the artistic journey of Perry's mind. Opening the album is a piece entitled "A Day", here Perry waits for nothing to make her mixed emotions known. The piece begins with the merging of folk-sounding vocals along with the mix of laughter and distortion before allowing listeners to hear the coherent direction of the song. Holding the message that "It's going to be a good day", Perry sings innocent and subtle vocals over a ballad-inspired acoustic piano composition. We hear the piece as it takes a turn towards the darkness both in lyrical and vocal content. This song has so many twists and turns, from genre to lyrical content and even vocal styles from the loud to the quiet to silent to loud, this piece truly showcases the nature of mood swings and instability in a way that is completely unique and enticing. #InMyHead begins with the sound of birds, chimes and happy key synths to allude to a stable mind - baring in mind the previous piece I was left wondering when the darkness would surface. This leaves listeners anticipating the switch like in a"scary scene" of a movie that never seems to come. #HappeningAgain is a piece that highlights the concept of mental demons in a way that is haunting, moving and simplistic through the use of reverb and delay in instrumentation and over the vocal production. This piece is very reminiscent of the group "London Grammar". #HappeningAgain is a spectacular dark pop-inspired effort. #NeedMe continues the cinematic eeriness that was present in #HappeningAgain before holding a more angelic vocal performance and offers a contribution from Alia Johnson. #Therapist offers another collaborative project, this time with Casey Deal. In its introduction, the piece features what sounds like a snippet of a recorded therapy session with a motivational message before offering a happy performance that is loosely based on satire. #AnySortofWay holds the message that you don't have to be a specific version of anything in the moment that you're in. Motivating listeners to just be as they are in that moment is a powerful message to express. This message rests on another simplistic acoustic production along with backing vocals that edge listeners to follow the message within the lines of the lyrics.

#LikeThis featuring Nigel Deaneis a song that I felt deeply from the classical strings to the reflective nature of the piece this song highlights what feels like a nightmare within a fairytale. Simplistically Stunning. - TAMARA JENNA -TJPL NEWS

#DearFriend is another fairytale production, this time without an undertone of darkness. This song is purely an appreciation of friendship that has been executed in a way that many can relate to. This song alludes towards a true friendship and maybe something even deeper than that. This is a beautiful piece that breaks down the barriers and demons found within other pieces to make way for something truly magical. #AReminder marks the penultimate song on the album. Edging back towards the eerieness that was found within earlier pieces o n this project, #AReminder acts as an affirmation of hope and confirmation that you are not a burden, you are not a crisis to be lefft out in the cold and you're not worthless. This is a stunning production from begining to end that marks the final collaborative effort on the project, featuring Kimberly Dunning. All of the messages and emotions are wrapped up in the final piece #OneDay where we hear the true depth of reflectiveness that Perry holds.

Gillgil is a truly moving and quite remarkable album, one that I know for certain that I won't forget in a hurry. - TAMARA JENNA - TJPL NEWS

---