BETHANY WEIMERS – Harpsichord Row – Reviewed by Dai Jeffries

If you ever need justification for the technology that allows someone to make an album in their bedroom using a sofa and some sleeping bags for sound-proofing then this is it. Bethany Weimers plays piano and acoustic guitar, gets her drums from Pro-Tools and added some electric guitar from Mark Stow for some extra colour. And that’s all there is to it.

Bethany wrote all the songs and sings them in a voice that is flexible and interesting, strong without being strident. The opening track, ‘Silver Moon’, has been released as a single but my preference would have been for ‘Lucky Day’ which follows it. Then Bethany takes us out of our comfort zone with ‘William And His Ghost’, an upbeat folk-pop song, and ‘The Letter’ which feels vaguely sinister.

The name of her record label comes from another song; ‘1784’ is about a man called John born in Suffolk in that year. The only trouble with Harpsichord Row is that Bethany doesn’t give us lyrics or notes on the songs so it took some work to find that it was inspired by her great-great-grandfather. I have discovered that ‘30000 Days’ is the length of the average human life and I assume that is what is implied. ‘Harpsichord Row’ is a street in Oxford where Bethany lives. At least it was; it is long since built over.

So: intriguing words, and I apologise for going on about the songs but a songwriter has to be judged by what he or she writes, coupled with sometimes spare arrangements and an interesting voice – and I mean that it a good way, too – and you have a rather stunning debut. Dai Jeffries

Artist’s website: www.bethanyweimers.com

Catalog number: 1784 Records 1784R1201CD

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