Esme Emerson - Applesauce

Suffolk siblings Esme and Emerson’s bite-sized third project is no less drenched in warm, hazy indie pop than its predecessors. Bringing together the mindful pop poetry of 2022 EP ‘S for Sugar, D for Dog’ and the busk-y indie template of 2024’s ‘Big Leap, No Faith, Small Chancer’, the duo remain refined and considered on the easy breeze through ‘Applesauce’. But here, the energy is a little higher - by no means high octane, mind, but far more informed by pop sensibilities. ‘Yard’ is sunshine indie pop at its most concentrated, while the percussion of ‘Too Far Gone’ is quietly confrontational and punchy. The four-track EP’s most interesting cut, ‘Stay’ is by far and away the duo’s most experimental, with its chamber pop affected vocals and electronically sprinkled, sprawling backdrop. With backing from a new label, Esme Emerson stretch their soft-pop much further - making applesauce from apples, they say - culminating in a wholesome but far more creative endeavour that captures the warmth of their music in a moment before it all kicks off.