Welsh producer Kelly Lee Owens begins her sophomore album, Inner Song (Smalltown Supersound), with an instrumental cover of Radiohead’s “Arpeggi.” Her version is all about effervescent electronics, and it can evoke the feeling of being underwater—isolated from the rest of the world with only your thoughts. When Owens’s vocals arrive on the following track, “On,” it sounds like she’s surfaced to announce a hard truth she’s discovered: “Can only love as deeply as you see yourself, and you don’t see me.” Her voice is tender but firm, floating elegantly alongside bubbling synth filigree, and as a harder-edged beat emerges, the confidence of her lyrics about moving on from a relationship seems to emanate from every kick and snare.…
Welsh producer Kelly Lee Owens begins her sophomore album, Inner Song (Smalltown Supersound), with an instrumental cover of Radiohead’s “Arpeggi.” Her version is all about effervescent electronics, and it can evoke the feeling of being underwater—isolated from the rest of the world with only your thoughts. When Owens’s vocals arrive on the following track, “On,” it sounds like she’s surfaced to announce a hard truth she’s discovered: “Can only love as deeply as you see yourself, and you don’t see me.” Her voice is tender but firm, floating elegantly alongside bubbling synth filigree, and as a harder-edged beat emerges, the confidence of her lyrics about moving on from a relationship seems to emanate from every kick and snare.…