Athena - Sudan Archives (2019)

Sudan Archives is a one-woman show who sings, plays violin, and produces. I heard this on a spin through new music when it came out. I filed it away as one that I liked a lot, but then didn’t go back to. Listening again, it’s too bad I haven’t been listening to it more.

One might be distracted by how smooth and mellow a lot of this sounds, but there’s a lot hiding under the smooth surface. Great bass registers, the violin being such a big part of the compositions (anyone can hire somebody to play violin on a track, but here it’s integral to many of the recordings).

Tracks I liked:

Down On Me - a great single that would fit well on a Weeknd record

Iceland Moss - the closest there is to a crowd-pleasing shout-along

Green Eyes - violin pizzicato (plucking) mixed with smooth bass