Haley Heynderickx - Seed Of A Seed

In the six years since the release of Haley Heynderickx’s inward-looking, stripped back debut ‘I Need To Start A Garden’, there have certainly been no shortage of global crises that have driven humankind even further into the lucent, addictive hidey-hole of their smartphones. On this offering ‘Seed Of A Seed’, the Portland-based singer-songwriter lures us away from our dark, screen-lit rooms and instead down a verdant garden path of delicate and thoughtful folky treasures, shining the crisp daylight on society’s ever-dwindling connection with the tangible, natural world. Utilising an intricate fingerpicking style often reminiscent of seminal folk forbearers like Bert Jansch or John Fahey - the latter of which is even referenced in loose homage ‘Sorry Fahey’ - there’s a timelessness to her arrangements, bolstered by a wide range of instrumentation that gives Haley’s soft, musing compositions a sense of grandeur. From the dynamic boldness of opener ‘Gemini’, to ‘Mouth Of A Flower’’s sweeping violins and evocative natural imagery, and the notably more country feel of ‘Foxglove’ or ‘Redwoods (Anxious God)’, she achieves both a sense of versatility and cohesion on this record, largely lyrically rooted in an ethos of anti-consumerism and slow living. As perhaps one of the most refreshing voices in indie folk, ‘Seed Of A Seed’ sees Haley Heynderickx harnessing a uniquely spellbinding and sensitive power.