Wild Birds Flying High is a thoughtful, exploratory new single from Denmark-born composer and pianist Karen Salicath Jamali.
By Katie Stewart
The track, just under four minutes in length, is anchored by a multi-layered, yet bare-bones feeling acoustic guitar. Dripping, fluttering, rhythmic to begin with, the guitar is paced, delicate, intricate, yet humble, allowing Jamali’s earthy, natural (yet belonging to some other-worldly nature) vocals drift above, clear and of central focus. The guitar feels like dust in the air, on the brink of settling but persistent.
Around a third of the way through the track, it becomes briefly restless, dancing in its own haze in a spur of triumph, creating this fascinating peak of faster rhythm, flicky, slappy strings reminiscent of traditional Spanish flamenco music, proving Jamali’s refusal to sit within any single genre. This brief, frantic, burst aligns with the chorus lyrics of the song – “wild birds flying high in the sky” – then quickly returns to a still quick but more calmly tempered, grounding pulse.
Having come from a background in neoclassical piano work and recently coming into more of an indie-folk songwriting space this year, Jamali notes herself how her artistic medium shifts and changes, but there remains a constant, reflective, stillness beneath it: she calls this ‘Quintessence Music’.
Though the dynamics of guitar change throughout (sometimes subtly, sometimes with more vigour), what remains consistent, and understatedly powerful and mesmerising, is Jamali’s soft, raw, archaic vocals. Playing with tone and pitch, near-sharps and near-flats, her melodies are unpredictable, sometimes uncomfortable, but intentionally so. It’s entrancing to listen to, and to see where each note flows and lands. Every time it feels as though its path was perfectly predetermined, you’re surprised by it.
Jamali’s new single is about a cycle of hurt, blame and shame she recognised in herself and others; it confronts this cycle and poses forgiveness, recognising that love persists beneath it all. Wild Birds Flying High skilfully captures this abstract sentiment exactly.
The single is out now, and you can listen to it below.
Supported by Musosoup #SustainableCurator
