The first single from the brilliant EP, Family Tree, Three and a Half Years is an epic full of compelling melodies, gunshot like guitar bursts and hypnotic hooks. The song begins with an eclectic guitar picking out an almost coldplay-esque riff over a simple acoustic guitar chord progression. There’s a dramatic quality to the music that is immediately enhanced by Rose’s plaintive voice as well as the bursts of staccato guitar that mark the end of every vocal line.
The lyrics tells the story of a relationship gone wrong and the devastating effect this has on one of the lovers. As the chorus approaches the song quickens. “How do you get up after years of free running when your muscles are so tired and they’re now bleeding?”. Rose sings as the music swirls dramatically around her.
The chorus is catchy and hook laden and, if you are anything like this writer, you’ll probably find yourself singing it in the bath and at the supermarket. Yet, towering above everything else is the beautifully emotive voice of the talented Rose, skilfully weaving her poignant lyrics through the clever soundscapes that she and her band have created.
The video, by rookie filmmaker Eilidh Gow, skilfully reinforces the feeling conveyed by the lyrics with the emotional displacement of the spurned lover cleverly symbolised by having her wake up in the middle of a field in the countryside yet still in her own bed. It’s a clever visual metaphor for the emotional displacement that often follows the end of a relationship.
This release marks Amelle Rose as a major talent and going on ‘Years’ and the accompanying EP, Family Tree, this is one rose that will not wither anytime soon.
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