The Album “If you leave” from the band “Daughter” was released on 18 March 2013 in Great Britain. It ended up being a huge success in the UK, which is impressing, since “Daughter” is a rather underdog band.
The band “Daughter” is an indie folk band from the UK, formed in 2010 in London. The members of the band are Elena Tonra (vocalist), Igor Haefeli (guitarist) and Remi Aguilella (drummer). Elena Tonra was born in Northwood, near London. She began having interest in music during childhood, when she received a copy of the album ‘Grace’ by Jeff Buckley. She started writing about “dealing with life in an emotionally way”. Her career began with her performing shows in London, under her own name. But, she didn’t really like that, so then she was joined by Igor Haefeli (from Switzerland), who said that Tonra just sort of had a power, which attached people to her. They began making songs and albums (like “If you leave” and “The wild youth”) together, and even became romantically involved. Later they were also joined by Remi Aguilella (from France). They still make songs today, even though they made most of them between 2010 and 2016.
by André Rütten
REVIEW: “If you leave” - A great success in Great Britain
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"If you leave" was the second great album of “Daughter”, and a marvelous success for the newly-formed band. It charted at number 4 in the indie charts, and at number 16 in the top 100. One of the songs of the album, called “Still”, even received a music video, which was released on 24 January 2013, and directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. The album has a length of 45 minutes, and in 2016, it had over 70,000 copies sold in the UK. It consists of the songs: “Winter”, “Smother”, “Youth”, “Still”, “Lifeforms”, “Tomorrow”, “Human”, “Touch”, “Amsterdam”, and “Shallows”.
The press has reviewed the album rather positively. The BBC Music described it as: ” instantly enchanting, hypnotic and more appealing than many other offerings”. The Guardian has depicted it as: “atmospheric”, but was set against “overwrought poetry”.
In my opinion, the album “If you leave” is a really beautiful one, it is very touching and emotional. It talks a lot to people who are struggling with personal and social problems. For example, the song “Smother” is about self-hate, which often plagues people who have social problems, or the song “Youth”, which talks about how beautiful the youth should be, and how hard life can get when adulthood is reached. It shows that some people in the world are having heavy problems to fight with, and need help. It’s always motivating to help someone, because even if we don’t really notice, a little talk, a smile or a good morning can make quite a difference, and make someone’s day.
OVERALL RATING: *****
Artwork by: André Rütten