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Palehound<\/a>\u00a0is Ellen Kempner,\u00a0a former Sarah Lawrence student. Former meaning she\u00a0dropped out, presumably\u00a0because even if the school\u00a0did have a 90s-inspired indie rock class, there wouldn’t have been\u00a0much left for her to learn; the 21-year-old\u00a0played everything but the drums on her new album, Dry Food.\u00a0<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Dry Food<\/em>\u00a0is the Massachusetts-based artist’s second release after her 2013 EP,\u00a0Bent Nail<\/a>. <\/em>It<\/span>\u00a0gets off to an aggressive start with “Molly,” a track that shows off Kempner’s instrumental skills\u00a0with\u00a0two guitar lines: one is wiry and\u00a0playful, and the other brash, a\u00a0machine-gun explosion of aggression. This duality continues throughout\u00a0the album:\u00a0you’ll hear gentle\u00a0strumming and fingerpicking, twisting guitar licks, heavy distortion, feedback and nose dives down the fretboard – sometimes all in the same song.<\/p>\n

The contrast in her music also applies to her singing. Her lyrics get\u00a0personal, and are deeply aware, but there’s\u00a0not so much vulnerability in her voice as a deadpan, matter-of-factness that masks\u00a0most\u00a0of the emotion. This works well with her songs – though Kempner isn’t afraid to get loud with her guitar; this isn’t dramatic or overly emotive music. Perhaps this is why she’s developed such a\u00a0serious knack for imagery when it comes to\u00a0describing feelings. So, the\u00a0unwanted makeout session on “Easy” becomes\u00a0“I’m pushing back your tongue\/ With my clenched-teeth home security system,” and\u00a0the tip-toeing of snobby “healthier folk” is revealed through\u00a0Kempner asking,\u00a0“Why don’t they hold me? They just cradle me like a homesick child.” <\/span><\/p>\n

Possibly her best line comes from the\u00a0title track<\/a>: “Y<\/span>ou made beauty a monster to me\/So I\u2019m kissing all the ugly things I see.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>Another key track is “Cinnamon,” a song that scatters guitar parts wildly over a smooth, shuffling beat. Kempner’s voice is cloaked in a heavy layer of reverb. By the end of the song she’s practically drowning in it, perhaps a result of a few too many rounds of\u00a0\u201cmixing water with gin and chasing it with cinnamon.”<\/span><\/p>\n

If you take\u00a0Dry Food<\/em> as it is, it’s a short, but solid album. If you consider that it’s Kempner’s first actual album, and she’s still in her (very) early 20’s, the 28 minutes of casual heartbreak become even more impressive.<\/p>\n

Dry Food<\/em>\u00a0will be available via Exploding In Sound<\/a>\u00a0on August 14th. In the meantime, check out “Healthier Folk” below.<\/p>\n