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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Archie Forde, Ben Beaumont-Thomas and Laura Snapes

Pollyfromthedirt’s grey-skied Anglo ambience and the week’s best new tracks

Pollyfromthedirt.
Foggily familiar … Pollyfromthedirt. Photograph: Willow Shields

From Darlington, County Durham
Recommended if you like Blood Orange, Dean Blunt, Elliott Smith
Up next The Dirt Pt 1 EP out now

As the internet spits out underground artists like mouthwash, it’s becoming harder to separate the visionaries from the vibe-hackers. But Pollyfromthedirt’s jagged pastoral pop demands more than just a passing scroll. Released independently this week, the County Durham native’s first EP clashes brass band samples, shuddering Midi strings and awkward acoustic guitar together. There’s a trace of Elliott Smith in his grey-skied songwriting, yet made entirely his own by the crude drum machines, pitched-up vocals and DIY production. At best, like the EP’s weirdest track, Kalm, the music departs from traditional song structure and coalesces into delay-steeped, swirling ambience.

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