Following the recent successes of Christmas In A Market Town (2018) and Nine Lessons: A Christmas Album (2019), husband and wife team, Pete(r) Adams and Rosie Green return with their first non-festive release in the form of The Seasons, a four track affair that aptly celebrates the four seasons of the year.
The first taster of the EP, Spring Will Be Here Soon was originally released as the current lockdown took hold, offering a ray of sunshine in an otherwise bleak world. Opening with a pretty acoustic melody, Pete sets a light and breezy moody before unveiling a becalmed, folky lead imploring Rosie to ‘lay the boy down, you’re tired and need to sleep’ before adding her own harmonies. As spring begins to bloom, a violin adds colour to the track as the duo weave a heady spell, you can almost see the moss forming on the door frame as Adams and Green paint a vivid picture of spring.
The Late Summer Chill sees the couple take to the porch one hazy evening, for a sun-kissed duet, accompanied by an upbeat strummed acoustic, a touch of finger picking and that aforementioned violin. The complimentary vocals of Adams and Green equally lull and seduce, whilst Rosie’s string work help’s provide the track a most welcoming traditional ‘English folk ballad’ type appeal.
Autumn, Back In Salem sees Rosie take the vocal reins, framed by Pete’s trusty guitar, handclaps and an uncluttered rhythm track. Green, purrs as she offers up the song as a final kiss-off, bringing down the curtain on a relationship with the considered lyrical hook of ‘you get this song as my last goodbye to you’, ably backed by a restrained Adams and with a middle section of cooed wordless harmonies, who knew that breaking up could sound so beautiful.
The EP closes with the suitably icy, sub two minute, Winter In America, musically sparse and haunting. The duo conjure visions of the lost and the lonely huddling in doorways as snow begins to fall. Moody keys back the mournful and reflective Adams, whilst Green adds her own voice, peppering an already bewitching finale. This is comparable in mood and delivery to the work of Low and their seminal Christmas album.
From the sprightly Spring’ to the sombre Winter’ Peter and Rosie have provided a stunning and diverse soundtrack to the changing sessions, with an EP that should be played and cherished all year long, a simply stunning addition to the couple’s evocative collection of EP’s.
By: Will Mun