Eva Maeve

Eva Marie is a singer/songwriter based in Earlham, Iowa. She has been writing music since she was 14 and learning how to record music since she was 15. For the Birds is her debut EP and is a first look into Marie as a recording artist. She has played at local gigs throughout high school and this experience is evident in the recording as Marie performs these tracks with the comfort and ease of a veteran. This five-track EP is an intimate and up-close-and-personal dive into her experiences. \

For The Birds gets rolling with “Toxic Love,” which is centered on guitar and vocals. The sparseness to the arrangement made the sound. The simplicity of the trackallowed room for greater emotional resonance. Leaning into intricate chord progressions and vocals brimming with vulnerability, this feels like a folk melding with dashes of country and indie. A sax solo really enlivens the atmosphere. A piano melody also adds to the vibes. A piano tune accompanies the vocals on “Days Like These.” This felt more in the ballad vein as the vocals seems to really take flight. A beat in the backdrop adds some dramatic emphasis. On “Issues,” moody guitars greet the start of this song as beats join in with some traction. The rhythm and melody have a sauntering groove. Marie’s vocals are very ear-pleasing here as her evocative style really captivates. The music had a fluid flow to it that made it so immediate.

On “Funny Way,” some shimmering guitars arrest the intro of this track. Marie’s vocals are sweetly rendered here. This also felt like another immediate song. The urgent subject matter about a destructive relationship compels you to listen on. “I Will,” the closer, continues in the vein of the previous tracks as more melancholy-tinged piano and beats come in toward the start. Once Marie’s vocals arrive, her voice really enlivens the vibe. The expansiveness of this song felt like a great way to close the album.

Most of the songs on this album are about five years old. The record is like a time capsule of another version of Marie, showing a side to her who is younger, more vulnerable and more naïve towards “many aspects of life such as dealing with toxic people, confronting your feelings towards yourself and moving on.” A snapshot of her life back then, evident on the EP is a sense of nostalgia that emerges on the album. This is subtle at first, but as the EP eases in, the sentimentalism grows in vibe as Marie reflects upon past loves and relationships in these songs. This acoustic undertaking sees Marie refining the singer/songwriter genres, giving the familiar sounds a more refreshing air. The startling chord progressions on guitar and her vulnerable vocals breathes new life into the aforementioned umbrellas, showing us an artist perfectly at home in front of the mic. - Divide and Conquer

“Little Girl’s Lament” is the first single from Eva Marie’s upcoming release Maybe I’m Sorry which is due out on October 1st. Eva is a singer-songwriter from Iowa and her new album tackles themes of self-revelation, self-perception, and resilience. - Idiosyncratic Transmissions