Scot composer and musician Anna Meredith combines electronica with classical instruments to produce music that has connections to past yet which still sounds fresh and modern.
I’ve decided to plump for the obvious choice from her début album Varmints as an introduction, but if you are new to her material and get on well with this track, then you should definitely check out The Vapours, particularly the NPR Tiny Desk version.
Meredith’s music uses much traditional and classical instrumentation, but she isn’t afraid to incorporate modern tools like sequencers and synthesisers/samplers.
She gets to perform her music in a variety of settings, with varying instrumentation available according to context. But I particularly like her five-piece band performing a NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert - here Meredith (keys, vocals, glock) is accompanied by guitar, cello, drums, and tuba. It’s rare to find joy in YouTube comments, but someone described the above performance as “like a vegan Slipknot”, which is simultaneously quite absurd and quite perfect.
Meredith now has two albums, and both are chock full of great tunes in a wide range of styles. Particularly worth a look is the video for Paramour, the opening track on the second LP. Great tune, and amazing single-shot video.
