For nearly a decade now, Portland-based artist Eli Goldberg has utilized his Ann Annie moniker to churn out abstract slabs of modern-classical, ambient, drone, and new age music that create a certain pastoral atmosphere through synths, tape loops, and the occasional field recording. Since linking up with fellow Oregonian alt-folk songwriters Julie Byrne, Haley Hendrickx, and Searrows, the project has revealed itself to be an ideal sound bed for lyricists, with Frankie Cosmos’ Greta Kline joining Goldberg’s ever-growing list of collaborators on his latest single and lead statement from his newly announced sixth LP, El Prado.
“The Meadow” is almost a competitively hushed recording, with gently plucked acoustic guitar barely perceptible in the opening moments before being joined by subtle backing Americana instrumentation (not to mention some sci-fi whirring) and, eventually, Kline’s equally soft vocals. “The lyrics are about looking inward and noticing changes over time, feeling warm and cold, distance and closeness,” shares Kline of the single, its careful balance of traditional folk and modern whimsy bringing Adrianne Lenker to mind. “I was kind of just freestyling when I was writing the melody, and it came together into this sort of wistful story of a relationship—from sharing a stage, to sharing a kitchen, to feeling distance in the great outdoors. The instrumental is so pretty and pastoral, and the original instrumental demo was titled ‘The Meadow,’ which led me to that ending of the story.”
El Prado is slated to drop October 3 via Nettwerk Music Group. Check out the first taste below.
