People who overthink have a tendency to become their own enemies. It’s human nature to measure our worth by our relationships, professional lives, emotional states, and how we compare to the people around us. This predicament is always amplified by the environment and the culture around us. On YOUR ANGEL‘s sophomore album A Star in the Headlights, the indie pop songstress explores her relationship to this phenomenon by vividly depicting the beauty and horror of trying to make it as an artist in Los Angeles.
On A Star in the Headlights, Maddy Boyd, the creative force behind YOUR ANGEL, serves up an amalgamation of luscious cinematic dreamscapes with harp and string embellishments, sticky trip-hop infused 808s, and intricately layered harmonies, drawing from a sprawling palette of eclectic influences like Britney Spears, Timbaland, Dido, and Portishead, to name a few. The Portishead worship is especially prevalent on the hypnotic track “Rose” featuring Brutus VIII.
Shared exclusively with A Grrrl’s Two Sound Cents, YOUR ANGEL has selected five songs that inspired her latest album A Star in the Headlights, which you can read below.
“Make It Forever” by George Clanton
This is one of my favorite songs ever. The wall of lush, shoegaze-y synths really inspired the chorus of “You Never Say Sorry” off of my album. The drum production on this song is also killer. I felt like I was born knowing this song, like I knew it from the first time I heard it. This whole record (Slide) is really amazing.
“Undertow” by Ivy
Ivy is one of the most slept-on 2000s artists and it’s so confusing to me! Her album, Long Distance, is one of the most perfect albums I have ever heard. “Undertow” is a song that makes you feel like you’re laying under the sun while the clouds are moving quickly overhead. It really inspired my songs “Baby” and “Honey.”
“PPP” by Beach House
This is another one of my all time favorite songs. Every song that inspired this album were songs that felt from the first listen like I’d known them forever. That’s the kind of music I want to create. I think that “PPP” is such a beautifully written song. The production is very simple, as is the case with a lot of Beach House songs, but I think that’s what makes it amazing. Beach House write these beautiful, poignant melodies and catapult them into this dreamy, melancholy universe.
“You Never Knew” by Neggy Gemmy
This song is amazing. I’m super inspired by how she pairs pop songwriting with trance-inspired production. Her music is primarily drum and synth based and has so much depth to it. Neggy Gemmy is an amazing female producer!
“White Flag” by Dido
One of the most timeless songs ever. I don’t know anyone that dislikes this song. It has truly beautiful songwriting and production. This song really inspired my song “Sleep Talk.” I love her use of strings paired with hard drums and bass in the verses. I was inspired by the panned acoustic guitar coming in during the chorus and opening it up. It’s just a perfect song. It has one of the best bridges too!
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