Following up the release of her beautiful new single Co-op, which was premiered on Steve Lamacqs BBC 6Music show, featured on Spotify UKs NMF playlist amongst others and has received tastemaker support from Under The Radar, The Independent, Wonderland, Record of the Day and many more, emerging singer and songwriter Bess Atwell now delivers an exceptional live rendition of her latest offering.
Capturing the same warm and inviting flow of the original recording, this new live performance of Co-op looks to fully unwrap the spellbinding presence that Bess brings to the record. Choosing to leave her guitar out of the picture, she has been able to reflect her own passionate demeanour throughout the release, offering up a far more intimate and inviting persona from start to finish.
Speaking about the new rendition, Lyrically, Co-op is my most stark and bold song and I wanted the way we performed it to reflect that. Ive always hidden behind a guitar when I play live so going instrument-less was exciting and out of my comfort zone.”
Co-op is an exquisite work that unfurls like one of those first precious blooms of spring; luscious ripples of guitar surround Atwells crystalline vocals (that will undoubtedly draw favourable comparisons to the likes of Marika Hackman and Julia Jacklin). Her lyrics switch between the past and present tense, offering polaroid snapshots of a time where refuge and routine took precedent. Its a charming vignette of Atwells life with her partner; a relationship that provided some sort of permission to recuperate from family trauma. It lays the groundwork for the ensuing exploration, what drives us to seek comfort, and what drives us away from it. This is perhaps most evident in her referencing Virginia Woolfs Mrs Dalloway in the line, Its the laughter, its the plunge. That scene where the title character looks out at a peaceful view and is suddenly overwhelmed by dread that something terrible is about to happen encapsulates what Atwell is trying to understand through her music.